Quelorie Magic
by RionAgrias
Summary: No Murders, No Personas, No S-Links, No Problems? It is late spring and Rise is coming to Inaba. The town is abuzz and everyone seems excited... well, almost everyone seems excited.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Sadly, I do not own Persona…

There are no foggy murders here, no Shadows, no social links, and no Personas. This is about the people. At least… as far as I know.

_Thoughts _

_

* * *

_

Souji Seta felt abandoned on a Sunday a few weeks the end of the spring session of his 2nd year. It was usually his little cousin of seven that was the one who was abandoned, but he felt rather alone today. Sitting on the couch of the second-floor room in his uncle's home; Souji was unsure of what to do today. Souji could study, he should study, but he did not really feel like studying. Souji could do some translating; he occasionally did some translating work that ended up being used in books and signs. Souji was not going to seal envelops or fold origami; he was against that sort of menial labor.

In the end, Souji decided to watch a little TV and put off his decision on a permanent activity for a little while. He was rather indecisive, after all. If only there was something good on TV. The only thing to watch was a shopping program where a sleazy guy named Tanaka was selling overpriced and questionable merchandise.

As Souji saw Tanaka offer a large fish and then some dubious diet food, he turned off the TV.

_Waste of my time... who buys this shit?_

Souji stood up, popped the collar on his white button-up, and opened the door of his room. Souji made his way downstairs and found his cousin, Nanako, watching a quiz show in the living room.

His younger cousin was a girl of seven with brown pigtails and wore a pink tank-top and skirt. Souji also thought she was a little lonely, and he had a very hard time cheering her up. Nanako's father was always gone because of his job; he was a detective for Inaba's police department. Her father was also a single parent because Nanako's mother died in a drunk driver accident years ago. Souji had a feeling it had scarred the poor girl. Souji had tried to talk to Ryotarou, Nanako's father, about Nanako, but it was too hard to get through to his uncle. It seemed that no amount of conversation could get Ryoutarou to open up to Souji.

"Hey Nanako… is Dojima out again?" Souji asked from the edge of the living room. He was asking the obvious, but he asked anyways.

"Something came up, so dad left early," Nanako turned around briefly before turning back to the TV. Facing the TV, she said to Souji, "If you want to go out, I'll be okay here. I can do some laundry."

He felt terrible for leaving her behind, but Souji still headed out of the home and towards the Northern Shopping District.

If someone was wondering why a student like Souji was in Inaba with his uncle and cousin, instead of the large city where his parents lived in. His parents were going to leave for work for a year, but he was perfectly capable and living by himself. He had friends in the big city, but instead… they ship him off to Inaba.

Souji admitted that there were a few good things about being in a small place like Inaba. Currently, Souji was headed to a small eatery named Aiya's. The food was good, oddly addictive, while being friendly on the wallet… usually.

It was noon when Souji reached Aiya's, so the restaurant was somewhat busy. Tetsu was slow getting the orders out because of the stress of the continuous comings and goings of customers, but when the food finally came…

_This is so good…_

After paying for his meal, Souji headed away from Aiya's. He was again plagued by his indecisiveness and lack of things to do. If only his best friend was not working, Souji would call him to hang out.

There was not much else in the Northern Shopping District to do, either. There was a textile store, but it was said to be inhabited by a biker gang member. Souji was in good shape, but he did not think he would last long against a gang member. There was a haunted shrine as well, Tatsuhime.

"I guess… I'll just go back home," Souji muttered.

When Souji arrived home, Nanako was in the exact same position when Souji left her before lunch time. She said that she had done laundry, but it looked like all she had partaken in today was watch TV.

"Good afternoon, Nanako," Souji greeted her.

She barely returned his greeting without turning around. Souji just sighed and walked towards the kitchen.

_This is such a depressing household._

He grabbed some leftovers from two nights ago; the last time Dojima was home, and ate a quick dinner. Souji went upstairs so even if Dojima finished his work and came home today, Ryotarou would not find him. This family was just far too dysfunctional for Souji to deal with on a daily basis.

Was it sad that he was somewhat looking forward to school on Monday, but at the same time… he had no wish to go there?

Souji woke the next morning and ate a breakfast of sunny-side up eggs and toast prepared by Nanako. Her father had come home last night, but Dojima had already left again before Souji was even awake. It was sad, really… Nanako was basically raising herself.

Walking down the Floodplains, Souji passed oak trees, a large covered wooden table, as well as a few of the students in his temporary high school, Yasogami High. The Samegama River and the nearby Floodplains was the path Souji took everyday to his school.

Yasogami, a one-building school, was a typical small town high school. Souji thought it was small, only because Souji's permanent school was so much larger than Yasogami High.

The classroom of 2-2 was where Souji was holed up in for the year. A typical boring classroom… at least his best friend was sitting behind him. Yosuke Hanamura, a boy who was never without with his headphones, became friends with Souji through the fact that they both had moved to the sticks from a bigger city. They had met the first day of term when Yosuke crashed his bike into a trash can and Souji helped him out of it.

"Hey, partner!" Yosuke called out.

"How are you, Yosuke?" Souji asked as he placed his bag on the hook at the side of the desk.

"Ehh…" Yosuke shrugged, "I had to work a double shift yesterday."

Souji nodded aimlessly… at least Yosuke had something to do.

As the bell rang and Souji took his seat, he started to remember one of the reasons he did not like being here; the completely incompetent and biased teachers that worked here. His homeroom teacher was a bucktoothed jackass who did nothing but make a futile attempt to curb the students' hormonal inhibitions, as well as ridicule and cut down other students. He had a teacher who spent the whole time flirting with the cute girls in the classroom, and another who made a goddamn sock puppet of himself and played with it while teaching his class. He had a googly-eyed math teacher, an English teacher that did not really know English… by the way; he also was the PE teacher. The Assistant Principal was the Social Studies teacher; she also wore a headdress and tried to find hidden treasure with a dowsing rod. What Souji would have to do for a normal teacher in this school?

Listening to teachers bored him; it was not like the subject matter was that hard. It was just that he would rather sleep than waste his time learning knowledge he already knew. It was just hard to be inspired to work when the teachers are pitiful.

When the final class was over, Souji stood and stretched out his cramped body. The only bad part about sleeping in class was that he usually ended up sore. Looking behind him, Yosuke was stretching as well. Souji was not the only person sleeping in class today.

Yosuke had walked around to the side of his desk and held his arms out in the air, "Hey Souji, want to try out our new steak dish? It's new on our menu. I can get you a discount."

Souji finished a yawn and stood up to face Yosuke. He could use some food, and it was something to do for a change. Yosuke was forced to come here because his father was the manager for a major mega-mart chain company named Junes. Yosuke, as the son of the manager, was forced out here like Souji. It was time for Souji to make the best of it in a small way.

"Don't forget about me!" a somewhat short girl with a brown bowl-cut in a very short skirt with her uniform exclaimed. She said to Yosuke, "You still owe me…"

Chie Satonaka was more of an acquaintance of Yosuke and Souji than a real friend. I guess you could call Chie a friend to Souji. Well… Yosuke was closer of a friend to Chie than Souji was. Souji sat next to Chie in class, but they never really clicked as true friends. She was just so gung-ho about things.

"What do you mean I still owe you?" Yosuke's attention was now focused on the shorter girl.

"My DVD, of course," Chie explained.

"I thought I already paid you back in steak!" Yosuke retorted.

"One steak does not pay for the DVD!" Chie replied.

Apparently, Yosuke had broken Chie's kung-fu DVD on accident and when he tried to return it on bent knees; Chie kicked him in the balls. Souji was present for it, but he still did not completely understand the whole thing.

"If I'm stuck taking you along, you better be grateful," Yosuke resigned.

"Alright!" Chie's face brightened at Yosuke's comment. She turned to a pretty girl with long black hair in a red and white blouse, yellow ribbon, and a much longer black skirt than Chie's and asked her, "Are you working again, Yukiko?"

Yukiko shook her head, "We have a bunch of sudden new reservations at the Inn. I have to get to work."

Yukiko's family ran the Amagi Inn, the only extravagant place in Inaba. Chie and Yukiko were the girls who sort of welcomed him to Inaba, but Yukiko seemed to have shied away after that. She was really shy, but at the same time… she was very close friends with Chie.

As Yukiko picked up her bag and walked off, Yosuke turned back to Souji and asked, "So… should we go?"

Having Chie in Souji and Yosuke's presence somewhat dulled the amount of conversation that would normally have passed between them. Yosuke was the kind of guy to text dirty jokes late at night; Chie gave him hell for that. Yosuke certainly could not make any sort of joke without Chie smacking him across the head while they were on the way to Junes through Samegawa.

Of course, when they reached Junes, Chie proceeded to eat Yosuke out of house and home. This caused another argument between the two of them, and resulted in another set of broken balls for Yosuke. She was so violent.

When Yosuke staggered back to his chair and sat back down, he looked at Souji and said to him, "That hurt…"

"You shouldn't have yelled at her about eating your month's salary," Souji told Yosuke.

Yosuke complained, "There was no way the DVD cost that much."

Chie remarked, "It's your fault, Yosuke!"

"I have to agree," Souji smirked.

"Jerk," Yosuke joked.

After the boys laughed and Chie sat down, Yosuke turned his head as a cute tall girl with wavy brown hair started wiping down nearby tables.

"Saki-senpai…" Yosuke muttered. He was staring at her with a dazed, almost longing expression.

Souji shook his head. Yosuke had a huge crush on this older girl, Saki Konishi. Her family ran a liquor store down in the Shopping District, and Junes was driving it into the ground. When Yosuke finally confronted her about his crush, she shot him down faster than Souji could blink. Saki thought Yosuke was a pain in the ass, and Souji had to admit; he could be one from time to time.

"Get over it already, Yosuke," Chie said to Yosuke, "She does not like you."

Yosuke turned around. His expression turned from dazed to confrontational, "Just leave me alone, Chie… Let me deal with my own problems."

Yosuke suddenly stormed away from the table in obvious disgust. He was not having a good day. Chie just rolled her eyes as he turned towards Souji, "He needs to see the truth. Saki is not interested in him… nothing is going to change that fact."

Souji sighed as he replied, "I know, but you should have shown a little tact with your words. Yosuke has feelings, Chie, and you hurt them."

Chie looked frustrated, showing these feelings by standing up and saying to Souji abruptly, "I need to go."

Souji was left alone at the circular table with only his thoughts to occupy his time. As he placed his hand on top of his silver-gray hair, he had time to think.

_Not only do I have dysfunctional family members… I have very dysfunctional friends. _

Souji eventually went home through the Southern Shopping District. He felt lazy… he would just catch the bus. As he headed south, towards the bus stop; he noticed that it was much busier than usual. It was as if people were rushing around the Shopping District at a greater rate than Souji had ever seen since he had come to Inaba.

Oddly enough, a good majority of the people were passing by that tofu store that Souji went by when Souji was headed towards the Northern Shopping District to eat at Aiya's. Why there was a sudden influx of people around the Shopping District… Souji had no idea. He really did not care, either. Souji was just going to go home and watch Nanako sulk due to inadequate parenting.

Dojima was home this evening and the three of them decided to watch TV after a so-so processed dinner that Souji pulled out of… who knows where.

The TV channel had been changed to the news. Dojima had gotten his hands on the remote and he had abruptly changed the channel. Unfortunately for Dojima when he changed it, the news was currently on the entertainment section. They were doing some interview about someone famous.

_What the hell is this?_

"That concludes Rise Kujikawa's statement about her temporary leave of absence from the entertainment industry," the agency spokesman said, "We're short on time, so if anyone has any questions, we ask that you keep them brief."

A reporter bugged this Rise, "I'm Ishioka from Lady's View. It says here you'll be recuperating, are you facing physical problems?"

"No, my health isn't an issue," the girl said. Souji was sure he had seen her somewhere before. She was cute for sure. She had that model-like body and red hair that he was not sure was natural pulled into pigtails.

_Pssh… People who try to make someone who they aren't, just… meh._

"Psychological problems, then?" the reporter asked

"What?" the girl was confused.

_Reporters are always a pain in the ass._ Souji rolled his eyes with his thoughts._  
_

"Rumor has it that you'll be staying with your relatives, but isn't Inaba a town far away and extremely small?" the reporter berated her.

She seemed distressed, "Huh? Um…"

He continued, "Is it true that they run a traditional tofu shop? Will you be helping out with the family business?"

The spokesman broke it up before Rise became even more stressed, "No more questions! This press conference is over! Clear the way!"

Chaos broke out as Rise and her agent tried to escape the throng of reporters, photographers, and other assorted paparazzi. It was kind of sad to see her struggling so much.

_Poor girl… _Souji held back a chuckle_. I wonder how much it cost to look like that._

The news streamlined into sports, so Nanako turned her head and looked at Dojima, "Is Rise-chan quitting her job on TV?"

He seemed annoyed, "Who knows… But if this is her hometown, then we'll have to deal with everyone who is trying to get a glimpse."

"I'm sure that'll suck for the police," Souji said. .

"You're telling me. We have enough problems as it is," Dojima sighed.

A Rise commercial came on TV. She was wearing a striped semi-revealing two-piece swimsuit as water rained down upon her head. She was holding a can of soda or some sort of mysterious liquid/poison. She took a drink from the poison. To Souji, it looked like something Tanaka would sell.

"What the hell is that stuff?" Souji muttered under his breath.

"I'm tired of diets! And enough with going to the gym! Good thing there is something easy enough that I can handle," Rise announced.

A voice advertised, "Quelorie Magic is made for those for those worried about their calorie intake and body fat. It'll slim you down in no time!"

Dojima muttered, "Rise Kujikawa, huh? Great…" Dojima went to make some coffee after that.

As Souji walked upstairs, he thought he had figured out why there so many people in the Shopping District today, and why there were so many random bookings in the Amagi Inn. One thing though… he really did not know a damn thing about Rise Kujikawa. She looked pretty enough, but she could be a slut in real life for all Souji knew.

It was a good thing that Souji did not take the alternate route to school the next day; it would have required him to go through the Shopping District. Instead, the whole Floodplains were abuzz with conversations about the arrival of Rise Kujikawa.

A shorter girl with long black hair asked another girl with shorter hair, "Can you believe Rise Kujikawa is coming to our town?"

"I know!" the other girl responded, "It's amazing!"

Some boy with dyed-blond hair was muttering to himself as Souji passed him, "I wonder if I could talk to her. She's about my age, right?"

_For the love of God…. _Souji shook his head.

When he got to his classroom, it was no better… actually, it was far worse. It seemed that every freakin' person was talking about Rise. King Moron would not be able to get his class to shut up this morning.

From chatting girls to almost giddy boys, all Souji could was roll his eyes.

Souji heard some girl talking to some others, "Do you think I could ask her how she gets so skinny?"

_She probably starves herself._

"SHADDUP! I don't want to hear anything about Rise Kujikawa!" Morooka had to yell to get control of his class, but… it never really worked as the students continued to gossip about Rise throughout homeroom. It never really stopped throughout the whole school day. It was driving Souji mad. It was as if every single word that came out of a student's mouth to be about Rise Kujikawa.

Finally, one of the teachers, Mr. Hosoi, tried to gain some semblance of order with a slightly less volatile approach, "I know you are all excited by the sudden announcement of a certain person's move to our town, but… please withhold your conversations until after class."

That did lessen the amount of conversation by the slightest amount, but not by much. The end of the day could not come fast enough.

Souji was hoping that his friends would not be going crazy about Rise. He just could not handle endless chit-chat about something he did not really care that much about. How wrong he was.

As Souji turned around sideways in his desk; he had not fallen asleep in class today because the endless chatter had kept him awake. Who else was waiting for him but an expectant-looking Yosuke?

"Did you see the news last night?" Yosuke looked giddy.

_Not you too..._

"I did," Souji responded, and then asked Yosuke, "Is this about Rise Kujikawa?"

"You mean Risette," Yosuke said, "It took me completely aback that she's leaving showbiz. I mean… she just started, but she's downright amazing."

Souji shook his head, "But… who is Risette?"

Yosuke looked almost affronted, "You don't know who Risette is?"

Souji did not really pay attention to the entertainment industry, at least the girl-pop model area. What it really his fault he did not know that much about Rise Kujikawa?

Souji shook his head, "Sorry…"

Yosuke sighed, "Risette is right about our age, I think. She's such a cutie pie."

"Uggh… I don't know if I should call you a dirty old man or a pervert," Chie had walked up behind Yosuke.

_You are thinking exactly what I'm thinking.._

"But… who can deny that she has a pretty face?" Yosuke questioned.

Chie just huffed and shook her head. It looked like there were no changing Yosuke's viewpoints.

"The interview said that Risette was coming to her family's tofu shop," Yosuke said, "Isn't there one in the Shopping District?"

Souji nodded reluctantly, "I passed by it a few times. Marukyu Tofu… I think."

"Do you think that is the one?" Yosuke's mood changed back to giddy.

"It did look busier yesterday," Souji admitted, "The whole south of the Shopping District seemed busy."

"I wonder if she here's yet?" Yosuke said to himself. He then announced, "We should go to Marukyu."

"You really want to head down to the Shopping District?" Souji had a exasperated look on his face.

_You have to be kidding me?_

"Let's go, Souji! It'll be fun…" Yosuke smiled. He asked Chie, "You want to come?"

She rolled her eyes, "I'll leave you to have your little fun, Yosuke. I just feel bad that you are dragging Souji into this."

"Souji will be excited, don't worry," Yosuke told her as Chie shook her head.

Souji ended up all but being dragged towards the Southern Shopping District by a very excited boy with headphones around his neck. Souji never knew what sort of music he was listening to, but he could not ask because his arm was being pulled off. When they arrived… it was complete pandemonium around the tofu shop. It seemed every TV station in Inaba, every idolizer, and any random passerby wanted a glimpse at Rise Kujikawa. Except… no one had any idea if she was even there.

There were at least four or five TV stations, not all of them from Inaba… their trucks blocking half of the Shopping District. It was not just the TV trucks because random cars were stopping all the time. It was no surprise, but a surprise still the same to see Dojima's partner directing traffic.

"Who's that?" Yosuke asked.

"It's the ace defective, my uncle's partner," Souji answered.

Yosuke and Souji walked past to where the detective was waving traffic by.

Adachi muttered, "So many people here, but no one's seen her yet."

Souji asked the detective, "Adachi-san, what are doing here?"

Adachi looked surprised, "Well… we don't have many police officers here. I got pulled to do the traffic," He continued, "There are so many people around, but it seems that she is not even here."

"What!" Yosuke seemed mortified, "Rise isn't here!"

_Sucks for you, Yosuke_

The people who were coming out of the tofu shop at the moment seemed to have the same thoughts as Yosuke.

Adachi shook his head as Yosuke and Souji walked away, Yosuke looking forlorn.

Souji tried to cheer him up, "Well… let's at least get some tofu, okay?"

Yosuke shook his head, "Go ahead… I can't stand tofu."

_You only want to go to a tofu shop for the girl, not the tofu… obviously._

Yosuke started walking away, but not before he told Souji, "Tell me if you see Rise or you hear anything about her… okay?"

Souji nodded, "Whatever…"

* * *

This is a random story I thought of all of a sudden. The mix of random Rise, plus no social links is something that I decided to play around with. We won't see Kanji/Naoto/some sort of Teddie for a while.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Sadly, I do not own Persona…

There are no foggy murders here, no Shadows, no social links, and no Personas. This is about the people. At least… as far as I know.

_Thoughts _

_

* * *

_

Souji nodded, "Whatever…"

He was by himself now, no questionable pervert at his side. Souji wondered if he should just leave because he had no real reason to be there anymore. He did not need to watch over Yosuke since he left. Now that Souji thought about it, he was dragged here without his consent… so he should at least get something out of it.

_I might as well get something, but I don't know if I want tofu._

Souji focused his eyes at Marukyu Tofu. It was a very quaint-looking shop from the outside that announced its name and gave it a homely and welcoming feel. With the disappointment that came with the fact that apparently Rise had not yet arrived… the crowd had thinned out. Souji made his way up the couple of wooden steps and into the open-air doorway of Marukyu Tofu.

_That can not be good when it rains… besides… it rains a lot here._

The quaint look extended into the inside of the shop. Besides the tofu in the back, there were multiple rows of various products that lined the front of the shop by the counter in open wooden boxes. It was not a very large shop. Souji was the only customer in the shop now and there was only one person behind the counter.

_It must have been insane… when all the paparazzi tried to squeeze and worm their way into the place. They could not have all fit._

Souji idly looked around. He was not sure what he wanted, so he took a glance at the person behind the counter. She was obviously some female dressed in white and a white kerchief covering her hair. Souji guessed that everyone believed that this person was the grandmother, but… she did have long smooth-looking legs underneath that skirt…

_I might as well ask._

At that point, an old lady came from Souji's left wearing the same sort of clothes that the other female was wearing. She had wizened gray hair, slightly stooped, and was shorter than the other female behind the counter.

The old lady asked, "Yes, may I help you?"

_Well… shit, that's an old lady. So does that mean the other person is…?_

"I think I know what I want," Souji nodded.

The old lady nodded in return and shuffled away.

Souji looked back over to the counter. "Umm… excuse me?" Souji said somewhat quietly.

The girl turned around and what Souji saw confirmed his suspicions. The dark red hair and brown eyes of the kerchief-wearing girl belonged to Rise Kujikawa. Rise Kujikawa was here… she had been here in front of everyone's ignorant stupid noses.

_People are such morons._

"Rise Kujikawa, right?" Souji asked.

"Yeah… so?" the girl who was obviously Rise responded. She sounded tired, drawn out… nothing like the bubbly girl from the commercial Souji had seen last night.

Souji thought he knew what he wanted, but this girl looked a mixture of annoyed and just plain exhausted. He asked calmly, "Do you have anything that is not straight tofu?"

Rise sighed. She was getting annoyed by his indecision. "You don't know what you want?" She started to second-guess Souji's motives, "What are you? A fan of mine? A stalker?"

Souji shook his head, "Sorry… I haven't been to a tofu shop in a while. I'm no stalker… I barely know who you are."

Rise raised an eyebrow, "I don't know if I believe you," She shook her head, "If you're really just here to shop… then I suggest you have…"

She was interrupted by Souji's cell. It was Yosuke.

"I'm sorry… one second," Souji said to Rise.

As Rise crossed her arms in irritation, Souji put the phone to his ear and said, "Hello?"

"It's Yosuke… Did anything interesting happen?"

Souji was rather reluctant to say anything. He felt like he should not really say that he was talking to Rise Kujikawa.

"…" Souji did not say anything.

"Something cool did happen, right?" Yosuke questioned.

"Ehh…" Souji was as non-committal as he could be. Rise still had her arms crossed, somewhat listening to the conversation.

"Something did happen," Yosuke said and then asked, "Did you see Rise?"

Souji sighed, "…"

The volume of Yosuke's voice suddenly rose, enough so that Souji had to hold the cell away from his ear. "You saw Rise! Is she at the shop! Tell me… Does she have those luscious legs… those defined curves… that perfect posture? "

_She can hear you…_

"I'm coming back… stay there!" Yosuke exclaimed.

Souji closed the cell in disgust. Rise looked even more tired than before… and now she looked truly annoyed.

Souji tried to explain, "I'm sorry… my friend is really excited… a bit overly excited about you coming here. He thought you had not arrived yet."

Rise said quietly, "Ganmodoki…"

"What?" Souji looked confused.

"You should try a ganmo…"

Souji nodded, "Alright… I'll have one."

"One moment," Rise told Souji as she headed to the back section of the store to get the said ganmodoki.

Souji felt bad in a way only in the fact because Yosuke was coming to Marukyu and this was probably the last thing Rise wanted. Souji decided that he should at least try and be friendly to her.

"Are you enrolling into a school here?" Souji asked.

"Why are you asking?" Rise returned with her own question while bagging Souji's food.

"I'm curious, that's all," Souji responded, cocking his head slightly, "I thought you might be staying here for a bit, and I am sure you are going to go to school while you are here."

Rise turned around, walked over, and handed the bag containing Souji's ganmodoki to him, "200 yen, please."

As Souji opened his wallet and handed the money over to her, Rise said to him, "I plan on enrolling in Yasogami since it is the closest."

"I see," Souji nodded.

"I'm planning on closing up for the day… so," Rise made a motion towards the door.

Souji knew what she was really doing by closing early. She wanted to get rid of him… and make sure the incoming Yosuke did not reach her.

"Thank you," Souji told her, and as Rise nodded in return; Souji added, "Beware of Yasogami students with fluffy brown hair and headphones around their necks…"

At that Souji turned away and walked out of the Marukyu Tofu Shop. He could not help but notice the smallest possible smile that Rise cracked as he left.

_I told you I wasn't a stalker…_

Souji had only made it to the bookstore when he was confronted by his returning classmate/friend/rabid Rise fan. Yosuke was out of breath, most likely from running back to Marukyu from somewhere else at a fast pace. It did not stop him looking excited, however.

"Why aren't you at the store?" Yosuke asked, coming to a halt in front of Souji.

"It closed," Souji answered, telling the truth.

"It… what!" Yosuke was shocked, "You said Rise was here!"

"Technically… I never said that," Souji replied.

"But she was there, wasn't she?" Yosuke questioned, looking a bit frantic.

Souji made a small nodding gesture, "Yeah…"

"How'd she look?" Yosuke asked.

Souji answered truthfully, "Tired…"

Yosuke looked very confused, "What do you mean?"

"I meant what I said," Souji said, "She looks worn out."

Yosuke shook his head, "I meant… physically."

Souji rolled his eyes. The idea that Yosuke was thinking of anything but Rise's luscious legs was… out of the question. All he cared about was one thing.

_I understand a celebrity crush, but when your celebrity crush moves here… jeez…_

"You would recognize her if you saw her," Souji shrugged. He didn't really care too much.

"C'mon on, Souji," Yosuke was frustrated, "Tell me… how did she look?"

Souji rolled his eyes, "She looked different than she does in the commercials. She's working in a tofu shop; the clothes can't be very alluring, right?"

Yosuke sighed, "You suck… you saw Rise probably before anyone else, and you're saying nothing. You just want to keep it to yourself."

_Such a big deal… So much for Saki…_

"Does it really matter so much?" Souji asked.

"It's not just for me," Yosuke started to explain; "It's for every good person in Inaba. She is an icon of Japan that everyone wants to see and know about."

Souji said, "I need to go, Yosuke."

Souji had enough of Yosuke and his attitude. He could not imagine what he would be like if he actually saw Rise. The cops would probably be there arresting his ass.

Souji left the Shopping District and Yosuke behind. Awaiting him at home was his semi-depressed little cousin, Nanako. Depressed because her father was chasing after some criminal and was not home yet, but only semi-depressed because she was singing along with the Junes commercial "Every day is Great at your Junes!"

_What would she say if I told her I met Rise Kujikawa?_

Souji ended up making some sort of processed food along with washed produce from Junes. Any idiot could cut up some fruit, as long as they did not cut off their finger. Souji still had three left.

After dinner, Souji headed up the stairs to his room. He pulled out a book and attempted to read a little before bed. Before he sat down on the couch, Souji turned on the TV; the only TV he had control of which stations played. As Souji started reading about courage, oddly enough, a commercial about the same poison drink was again on TV. The "Quelorie Magic" or whatever it was, the only real allure to the drink that obviously would not make you lose weight was the young girl in the swimsuit.

_I guess Yosuke is just at the age where long legs, cleavage, and other aspects of girls appeal to him._

It made sense and Souij was probably too hard on Yosuke earlier today, but… Souji was trying to think of Rise's interests. She looked like so worn-out and that the last thing she wanted to deal with was someone who would fawn over her.

It seemed that Yosuke could not keep his mouth shut as the next day; Souji had become the most important person at Yasogami relating to Rise Kujikawa. Souji was the only person to see Rise yesterday and Yosuke had seemingly told everyone.

As Souji walked up the stairs towards the 2-2 classroom, he could hear whispers throughout the hallway. He could not escape the words of both girls and boys wondering what he heard and what he had said to Rise Kujikawa.

"I heard he's the one who talked to Rise," a girl with medium-length brown hair whispered to another, "How did he get that chance?"

"I heard the paparazzi couldn't even find her yesterday," a boy with a part on his left side said out loud, "I'm so jealous."

In the classroom, he had to deal with Yosuke, his classmates, and oddly enough… it seemed that his homeroom teacher had a pedophilic crush on Rise Kujikawa.

"That girl… Rise Kujikawa," Mr. Mooroka ranted as usual, "That girl hasn't been in school for ages. If she knows what's good for her, she should enroll in one." He added, "I don't want you to continue your gabbing about Kujikawa. She probably doesn't want you to."

_Don't tell me… so disturbing…_

After classes with worthless teachers such as Nakayama who whined about her husband every day of the year, Souji had no respite from the classmates who crowded around his desk.

Chie had almost no interest, but still said to Souji from the seat next to him, "I find it pretty amusing that everyone cares so much about you talking to Rise."

"Tell me about it," Souji nodded.

Yosuke bugged him a little more about Rise, but Souji waved the boy with fluffy brown hair off and rushed to the only club he joined… the basketball club.

The basketball was kind of a joke where most of the team did not real give a damn, but it was still a place to practice shooting hoops. Only one person cared about basketball hardcore and he got pissed at times at those who were not. Kou Ichijo was the captain of the basketball team.

Though… even he was making fun of Souji today.

"Hey Souji, I hear you got to spend some time with an idol," Kou said to Souji with a joking smile on his face, making the whole team stop their layup line.

Souji was so frustrated… He said to Kou, "Please… I'm tired of listening to this sort of crap."

"Okay… okay," Kou shook his head, "Well, after practice we will go with you and Daisuke to Aiya's, okay?"

Daisuke Nagase was the captain of the soccer team and was the best friend of Kou. Daisuke had met Souji first day after practice. The three of them went to Aiya's and now it is a tradition after practice to go have some ramen.

Daisuke met up with Kou and Souji, and then they headed to Aiya's. After a little teasing and joking with Souji, the silver-haired young man ate a good deal of noodles. He wondered if there were as many people waiting to try and take a look at Rise. Souji just decided to go straight home in case something like yesterday happened again.

Another boring night at home with Nanako and Dojima was how Souji spent his evening. He ended up reading before bed again. This time, when Souji turned on the TV, he saw a re-run of some sitcom. It did not take him long before he saw a certain teen pop idol on the set.

_You have to be kidding me…_

Rise Kujikawa was on this sitcom. It figured, really. She was really popular before she quit, supposedly. At least, that's what Yosuke said. She just looked tired and worn-out in Souji's eyes.

Everyone was in a rush when Souji was walking down the Samegawa. As he got close to the school, Souji could see people running towards the entrance of the school… towards the metal gate.

_What the hell is going on now?_

There were at least 40 students crowding around near the metal gate, so Souji slowly walked towards the gate; he needed to get to class after all.

Souji heard a male voice call out from the edge of the three-deep circle, "I can't believe Risette is going to our school!"

* * *

I just wanted to bring a short chapter to you before I go off and become busy again. For those in America, Martin Luther King's Day is all but upon us. Auf Wiedersehen.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Sadly, I do not own Persona…

There are no foggy murders here, no Shadows, no social links, and no Personas. This is about the people. At least… as far as I know.

_Thoughts _

_

* * *

_

Upon hearing the words that Risette had enrolled and arrived at school… all but the whole student body had crowded out around Rise by the metal gates. It made Souji wonder if someone else had heard about her incoming arrival because the students circled rather quickly. When she told him that she was enrolling, Souji had no idea Rise was coming to school this early. Souji was certainly shocked to find a group of people surrounding her before school started.

_Another crazy day…_

Souji tried to maneuver his away around the throng by going around the edges of the four-deep circle. He shifted his way through the throng while doing his best to ignore the voices, arms, and legs that tried to get through to Rise Kujikawa.

"Risette! Risette!" a girl was yelling, "Would you sign my textbook!"

"Risette!" a boy yelled, "Marry me!"

_C'mon people…_

There were only two people in class 2-2 when he arrived just before the bell, and both of those students were girls. Chie Satonaka looked exasperated while Yukiko Amagi was sleeping at her desk.

Chie seemed surprised to see a male not fawning over Rise, and she expressed it by asking Souji, "Why are you not down there blocking Rise's path to class? You are a guy, aren't you?"

"Sorry if I don't follow the crowd," Souji shook his head. He looked at the girl whose long black hair was usually full, flowing, and shining, but now was stringy and worn. He asked Chie, "Is Yukiko that worn out?"

Chie nodded, "It seems that all of the TV crews, paparazzi, and everyone else are staying at the Amagi Inn to cover Rise's arrival to Inaba. Apparently, not everyone acted properly towards her or her mother, so it has all been too much for her."

Souji had to agree with Chie; Yukiko looked terrible. The ones who came to exploit Rise had driven Yukiko to exhaustion.

Souji sighed, "I guess all we can do is wait for class to start… though I don't know if any other students are going to show up."

There were plenty of stragglers making their way into Morooka's class that morning. Morooka had no problem yelling at them, "Are you all so busy fawning after… ogling Miss Kujikawa? Enough so that you can't get to class on time?"

_If only Morooka didn't take his sweet ass time getting here as well, probably staring at Rise._

If the students were distracted the past couple of days, they were beyond distracted today. The whole notion of having Rise Kujikawa at Yasogami High had brought the attention span of the student body to a standstill. It annoyed the hell out of most of the teachers, and sadly… it bugged Souji. As bored as he got with school at times, it was sad that he would rather just focus on his studies than pay attention to an idol.

_I don't care how cute you think she is…_

After being poked in the head by Sofue's dowsing rod… apparently, she thought Souji had some mystical powers, or was it that there was treasure in his ass?

_I do have a candy bar hidden in my shirt pocket._

Part of Souji could not wait to get away from all of these distracted fools when school ended, but where would he go? He would probably end up fighting more masses when he made his way down to the first floor where Rise was in class.

Souji sighed… he could just rush out of the school as fast as he could, but it was a day where the only thing he could do was… nothing. Maybe… he could stall Yosuke and see if Yosuke married Rise or something exciting.

_If Rise did not move here, people would not have all converged and started to act on their desires. How long until they start to actually ask out Rise… seriously ask out Rise? _

Souji started to fidget nervously as those thoughts ran through his head and gossiping became rampant again.

"Did you know?" a boy near the far corner of the room asked, "Morooka bought a Rise pin-up book."

"That is just wrong," the other student, one that Souji had heard confessing his love to Rise earlier today, responded.

_Good god… Pedophilic bastard._

When the final bell did ring, Souji ended up just resting his head on the desk. A few people made their way downstairs to see Rise. He was surprised when Yosuke of all people came by his side.

"Yosuke…?" Souji lifted his head up and looked at Yosuke. He was wondering why Yosuke was not one of the ones chasing Rise, "Shouldn't you be downstairs?"

"I think the whole first year is going to be conjugating around her after school," Yosuke explained, "I could go, but I don't think I would have a chance to talk to her today."

"Unfortunate," Souji shrugged. He really did not care.

As Yosuke adjusted his headphones, he said to Souji, "I have an idea."

Souji stood up and collected his bag, "What is it?"

"Why don't we both go straight for the front gates and meet Rise there?" Yosuke suggested.

Souji shook his head as took a step back, "Wait… why would I want to go meet Rise at the front gates?" He continued, "I thought you said you wouldn't have a chance to talk to her. Why'd you change your mind?"

Yosuke smiled, "It is Risette… and a new plan, so I believe that I should talk to her."

Souji put his thumb and forefinger in-between his nose and closed his eyes. Stressed as he was, Souji had to restrain himself from venting his frustrations. "I'm not going to say anything, nor am I going to join you, Yosuke," Souji said after taking a deep, calming breath.

"Are you sure?" Yosuke asked. He thought it was a good plan.

Souji's fingers still in-between his nose, said, "I'm sure…"

Yosuke gripped his bag and nodded, "See you around Souji."

Seeing Yosuke leave the classroom, Souji turned his head to see Yukiko heading out through the other doorway. She still looked tired, however.

Souji heard a voice from his left, "Yukiko has to work at the Inn again. They are running her ragged."

It was Chie that had spoken to Souji, and he responded as he turned to her, "Hopefully, the business will slow down a bit after Rise settles down."

Chie nodded, "I agree… I don't want Yukiko to get sick from all of this."

"Yes," Souji said.

Souji had his bag and prepared to leave the school, but… how would he leave without being trapped in the quagmire that awaited him below? Souji was sure that there a few people that had the same idea as Yosuke's, so the front gates will probably turn into as big of a mess as the first floor.

_I can jump out a window. If I jump out the 2__nd__ floor window I'll probably break something. That is not possible._

Souji had no idea what to do when he suddenly exited his classroom, turned left, and kept going past the main stairwell where all the people and noise was currently congregating.

_I can not believe I did not think of it earlier. I'll leave through the Practice Building's Soccer Field. Daisuke most likely has the other gate fence unlocked, since he is probably practicing by himself today. He is scared of girls or something._

As Souji headed towards the Practice Building staircase, the only students he passed were couples. Boys whose girlfriends would not let them anywhere near Rise, no matter how much they wanted to. There were students that just left early, like Yukiko, because they had important tasks to do. The real question is why Souji is leaving early?

_No matter how bored I am, it's not important to me to waste time in screwing around trying to get some popular girl's attention when she is worn out and obviously wants to relax. I guess no one actually talked to her to figure that out._

Making his way to the first floor of the Practice Building, Souji saw something that annoyed him. The Rise fan club, black hole, whatever the hell it had become… it had expanded well into the club area.

_You have to be shittin' me._

"Yo Souji!" A familiar voice belonging to a young man wearing a light blue track suit called out, "I can't get to the Practice Field." He seemingly had tried to get through the main staircase to the Practice Field.

"Daisuke!" Souji shook his head, "Do you have the keys to get out the back way?"

Daisuke cocked his head, "Are you planning on leaving through the soccer fields?"

"I'd like to," Souji told Daisuke.

Daisuke replied and pulled a set of keys from one of his pockets. He yelled to Souji as Daisuke threw them to Souji's hands, "Give them back to me tomorrow morning!"

"I understand," Souji said.

Souji made his way out the door to where the soccer team practiced. He almost joined the soccer club instead of the basketball club. He played quite a bit of soccer as well, but the weather seemed to be a bit too erratic here in Inaba; it was always raining and becoming foggy.

_I don't know how Daisuke was going to practice by himself… dribble around?_

The goals were taken down and none of the equipment was set up. If Daisuke wanted to practice his shot, he would need to spend quite a while setting up the net by himself.

_If he's really that dedicated… damn._

Souji sighed as walked through two soccer fields to the side entrance and found the correct key to place into the swing gate. Before he could turn the key, Souji heard a yell behind him. A voice he had heard before…

"Are you leaving this way? There's a way out?"

"Rise Kujikawa?" Souji turned around to see a girl wearing a white blouse with the yellow ribbon over a somewhat short skirt; her red hair done in double ponytails that he had seen in a commercial. Her shining eyes though… they were still dull.

"Yes…?" Rise responded, "I am in a hurry, so…"

Souji nodded and turned the key, "Let's go..."

Souji walked through the small gate, there was room for one, and gestured for Rise to follow. When she did not, he turned back around, and saw that a group of ten people had followed her to the soccer fields.

"We have to hurry," Rise said, almost monotonic as she turned her head, walked through the gate, and grabbed Souji's wrist.

"Hey… what are you doing!" Souji was surprised by the most recent actions that were undertaken by Rise.

"Rumors will start if they see you," Rise sighed.

Souji was going to respond that he did not want that, but Rise started running, which resulted in dragging Souji towards the Shopping District.

_Wait… what the hell is going on?_

For a girl Souji thought would be completely out of shape, she was able to keep up a decent tempo… at least until there would be no one be stalking her. They stopped completely somewhere near the Shopping District, the edge of the Floodplains, to be exact. They were close to the rice paddies where Chie tormented Yukiko after the very first day of school, actually.

Rise had let go of Souji's wrist and was walking a step in front of him. Souji's wrist hurt a little bit.

_My wrist will be sore tomorrow._

"Are you okay?" Souji asked, looking at Rise, "My classmates or anyone else bother you too much?"

"Nothing that I'm not used to," Rise said plainly, "Actually, I'm used to worse."

Souji and Rise continued their walk until they reached the gas station. They were getting close to the tofu shop, but Souji had barely said anything. He did not have much to say, anyways.

"I know you must have come here to rest, but you have to deal with the same exact things you always deal with," Souji apologized.

Souji realized that what he had said to her was improper as soon as he had said them, but all he could do was receive the tongue-lashing that Rise gave him.

"Do you pity me? Do you think all I deal with… care about are paparazzi and stalkers?" Rise gave Souji a look of disgust, "You are making assumptions of what I was dealing with when you have no idea…"

"I'm sorry," Souji bowed his head.

Rise shook her head, "You wouldn't know, no one does… it has all been too much."

As they reached the tofu shop, Souji stopped as Rise turned to enter her work and home. She turned back for a moment and surprised Souji by giving a small smile, "Thank you for helping me get away… hopefully I won't need it again."

Souji nodded in response… it bothered him.

_That smile… it was not quite genuine. Whatever is on her mind… she's really hurting._

"Rise!" Souji yelled. He did not know why he decided to yell, but he did anyways.

Rise was already at the doorway of the shop when she heard Souji's voice. She almost did not turn around, but amused him and turned again.

"I don't know anything about what's wrong… but I'm willing listen if you want to share," Souji told her.

Souji did not wait for a response before he walked off towards the Northern Shopping District. He did not even know why he told her that. It just… did it seem like something amusing to do? Would it be interesting to listen to some worn-out girl's problems that are probably much worse than anyone thought? He had time, but did he really want to do so?

_I am acting kind of stupid today… Letting Rise drag me around and then saying I would listen to her problems when she yelled at me for not understanding them. Asinine..._

Souji really hoped that Rise was right about no one seeing him and that no one started a rumor about him; that was last thing he needed. He just wanted a normal year in Inaba. Tomorrow was going to be normal, hopefully… and he could get out of it with no problems. Souji was being berated by one of the members of the Drama Club to join, but she looked a bit moody. It could be worse…

_I wonder what Yosuke thought of Rise in the school uniform outfit? Did he end up bleeding to death when he saw her? He didn't get to see her after school, though. Well, I am sure there were a few fatalities when she dresses in a school uniform. Childish… _

As he turned towards the Residential District and towards his temporary home, Souji realized he was not bored today.

* * *

I wanted to finish this chapter today, but it was bugging me and I slowed down a few times. I was busy and I am now filling out an application for a field research school trip… thing in Malta. Happy Readings and Auf Wiedersehen.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Sadly, I do not own Persona…

There are no foggy murders here, no Shadows, no social links, and no Personas. This is about the people. At least… as far as I know.

_Thoughts _

_

* * *

_

Nanako was not depressed tonight, and her mood had her smiling for once. She even tried to help Souji out with making the processed dinner. Souji believed it had something to do with Dojima coming home the past couple of days. Whatever it was, it was not a bad thing by any means.

They were sitting around the table, eating the subpar dinner and watching the news, when Dojima looked at Souji and asked him, "I heard Rise Kujikawa enrolled at your school."

_How did I know he was going to say something? He doesn't like anything that causes disturbances in the city._

Nanako cut in before Souji could say anything, "Rise-chan goes to your school!"

Souji nodded, "Her first day was today."

Dojima asked Souji, placing his drink back on the table, "Are they causing trouble for her?"

"I doubt it is nothing worse than she is used to," Souji shook his head, remembering what she said.

"She came here to relax and recover, not to be pressured even more," Dojima explained, "I doubt this is what Rise wants…"

"I don't know if anyone knows what Rise really wants," Souji said.

_Rise told me that I was wrong when I was just tired… What does she want? What did she come here for?_

"Rise-chan isn't tired?" Nanako looked confused.

"No, I think she's tired… I just think there's more," Souji explained, "Something that she is not willing to share with us."

"If that is it," Dojima said, "I am sure she has a very good reason for not telling us why she is acting this way."

As Souji nodded, Dojima continued, "You seem to know a bit, so I want to ask you… Have you been trying to talk to Rise Kujikawa?"

Souji raised an eyebrow. Someone like his uncle… he was a person he would rather not disclose information about his recent escapades. That's why Souji told Dojima, "No, I have just been hearing things from other people… you know, passing by."

"Well… don't disturb her," Dojima warned.

Souji and Nanako spoke a little longer after Dojima warned the high school student. They conversed about Rise Kujikawa; Nanako was excited about the fact that the ex-idol was now at Yasogami High. Souji was not sure if he was excited, or if it was just a hassle for her to be there. Souji probably made an ass of himself earlier today by telling Rise that he could listen to her problems, so the arrow was probably moving towards a hassle.

Souji headed upstairs a short while after Nanako was forced up to bed by Dojima. He did not really feel like talking to his uncle tonight. Besides, his uncle seemed a bit cranky and was still a bit suspicious of Souji. That was why Souji headed upstairs, grabbed a book, and turned on the TV before he sat on the couch.

_I should probably listen to Dojima and stay out of it… renege on my offer of help and listening._

Souji was idly turning pages of a book about a teacher that reminded him a few of the ones at Yasogami. The guy was a coward that was a terrible teacher that should never in his lifetime be let near students. Sadly, that did remind him of half of the teachers at Yasogami.

Fifteen minutes into his reading, the program on his TV changed from news to a re-run of some teen drama. It seemed to be about of a bunch of young girls in the first year of high school, all of the peer pressure, and everything else about high school. Sure enough, one of the girls was a slightly younger than the present, Rise Kujikawa. She was dressed very similar compared to now, with a very similar high style, too. Souji noticed the differences, though: the bubbly smile, the cheery attitude, and the body language exuded by Rise.

_But… this whole personality in the show seems like a sham. I wonder if what I am seeing in Inaba is her real personality. Maybe that is false, too?_

Souji's walk to Yasogami High the next day was a slow one. He still heard a lot of students talking about Rise as they passed by Souji; the initial shock of her coming to Inaba or their school must not have worn off yet. Souji wondered if there would be the same amount of students gathered around her everywhere Rise went.

Souji shrugged as he made his out of the Floodplains and down a few crossroads before reaching the district that would lead him to school. It would not be his problem if Rise was overwhelmed by people today.

Souji could not see anyone by the gates as he closed the distance to the school. It looked like they were not congregating around Rise today… or she had just not arrived yet and they were waiting to swarm around her. He passed a trash can when a yellow bike zoomed into it and a brown blur toppled over.

Souji knew immediately who the bike belonged to. He greeted the fallen young man with fluffy brown hair and headphones, "Hey Yosuke…"

Souji's classmate and friend lie sprawled in an awkward position. He had fallen face first off his bike, and at Souji's voice, rolled over to speak to him. "Hey buddy…"

Souji reached out to Yosuke and helped up his best friend. This was not the first time Yosuke crashed his bike, but… this was by far the most damaging wreck. Though there seemed to be no physical injury to Yosuke, Souji was not going to discuss mental damage, the amount of damage taken to the bike was immense with both handlebars and front wheel bent.

Yosuke stretched out his back before picking up the damaged bike by the mid-line. They looked at each other before they started walking towards school. Souji said, "Now do you believe me that you need a new bike?"

_I told you that after your second accident, but no…_

"Shut up, Souji," Yosuke said jokingly.

"Are you alright?" Souji asked.

"I'm better off than my bike," Yosuke responded.

"I'll call an ambulance then," Souji said.

Yosuke sighed, "There is nothing wrong with me."

They were almost at the gates of Yasogami now. Souji looked at Yosuke again and asked, "Hey Yosuke, did you ever see Rise yesterday?"

"Risette?" Yosuke looked back at Souji, "No… she never went past the gates. I wonder what happened. Did she slip pass me or something?"

"I'm sure it was really crowded down there," Souji said to him, not mentioning that he was at the cusp of the huge mass yesterday.

"I had enough trouble getting to the gates," Yosuke said, "I wonder if she had already left by the time I got down there."

They were walking up the main staircase of the school when Souji spoke to Yosuke about his need to leave for a second, "I need to return something to Daisuke. I'll be back in a second."

"Sure thing," Yosuke nodded.

Instead of heading into his classroom, 2-2, Souji went to classroom 2-1. That was Kou and Daisuke's classroom and it took him all of thirty seconds to give the alternate key back to Daisuke. Souji hoped he would not need it again.

He fell asleep in class today. It was not like he going to learn anything today. Besides, it was King Moron trying to teach him something. Morooka did not even try waking him up, either. The idiot teacher was probably too busy fantasizing about the fourteen-year-old girl that enrolled here yesterday.

_Pedophile…_

After school, he was all but dragged to his first appointment with the drama club. The girl with shoulder-length black hair was the member that 'coerced' him to join. By 'coerced', Souji meant forced to join.

There were about twelve members in the club, and most of them looked as squirmy as Souji did. Only one person looked serious in this whole thing, and that was the girl who had dragged him here, Yumi Ozawa.

"You can just watch if you want," Yumi gave a small smile as the group formed a circle to practice, "We are working on a screenplay, but we have not chosen roles yet."

_So… do they want me to try and play a part so they can give me a role, or do they want me to stand here like an idiot? Why did I even come here?_

Souji decided to stand there for a minute and observe the group… maybe if he did not do anything he could slip away unnoticed and no one would be the wiser. As he assumed, the only one with any talent was Yumi; she was also the only one actually trying and not flirting with each other.

Between leaving and doing something, Souji decided that it would be rude to just leave and broke a silence in-between two weak attempts at a role two boys did not deserve to have.

"Souji-kun?" Yumi raised an eyebrow.

"I guess I'll try a role," Souji said.

"Okay!" Yumi smiled as she gestured to have the president hand one of those rough screenplays to Souji.

Souji was surprised that the president could actually detach himself from his girlfriend as the leader of the club handed a screenplay to Souji. Souji was not sure of what role he should try to take on.

_Should I try out for the male lead? The villain? The village idiot? Hell, I don't know!_

Souji was thinking about what to do when Yumi tried to assuage his mind, "Just pick a role you think you could fit into. A role you could become…" She smiled, "You'll do great, no worries."

_A role I could become… how about the village idiot? No, no… I should leave that for the President of the club._

Souji finally decided to try and give it a go with the male lead. He took a deep breath and was about to read the first line, something about… moons and other shit… when the door opened.

The president's mouth had dropped as close to the floor as was humanly possible, his arm punched by his girlfriend as drool started to flow freely, and that made Souji turn around. As Souji turned around, he saw the same girl that had dragged him halfway to the Shopping District yesterday. Rise Kujikawa had entered the drama club and had promptly turned every boy in the club into simpering idiots. Well… almost every boy in the club.

Yumi walked towards Rise, for she was the real leader of the club and stood in front of the ex-idol who was at doorway of the club.

Yumi asked, surprisingly, with no excitement in her voice, "Rise, do you want to join the drama club?"

"No, thank you," Rise, though she still had that somewhat dull look on her face… still looked beautiful in every boy's mind.

"Then…?" Yumi looked confused.

Rise explained, while pointing at Souji, "I'm only here to talk to him."

If they were in shock and awe before… their expressions had differed from disappointment to a different kind of shock; it was, "Why in the world does she want to talk to Souji?"

Souji was slightly confused as well, but he was also hitting himself in the head for his words yesterday. He just had to say what he said.

_Shit…_

Rise's tired look did have a hint of expectancy, so Souji had no choice but to follow her out of the drama club. Souji could already hear whispers before the door even closed on the club door.

If it did not seem awkward to Souji to have Rise Kujikawa walk down the second floor with him trailing behind, the awkwardness came from the few people still at school and that were staring straight at Souji.

Souji had to look at Rise from slightly behind and try to… he had to figure out why in the world she would come and search for him.

"Souji, right?" Rise spoke all of a sudden.

"Yes," Souji responded. He continued as they passed the main staircase, "Why did you look for me today?"

Rise, still with a somewhat monotone voice, explained, "I thought you were in the Band Club, and it started raining, so… there was no basketball today. I eventually found you…"

_That didn't really answer my question._

Souji tried to ask again, "Well… why did yo…"

Souji did not get to repeat his question because of a call from behind, "Risette!"

The call made both Rise and Souji turn around and see the young man with fluffy brown hair and crossed arms.

_Oh shit… It's Yosuke. I hope he doesn't start rumors._

Rise did not seem to care, much to Souji's chagrin, because she stayed in place and allowed Yosuke to walk straight up to them.

_Damn you, Rise…_

Yosuke looked almost giddy in Souji's eyes. "Risette, I can't believe I'm getting a chance to talk to you," Yosuke said to her.

"I was here yesterday," Rise responded. She continued, "People have been circling around me the past two days… I am sure you want something."

Yosuke seemed a little taken aback by her first couple of phrases, but at the last few words; it made Yosuke's eyes brightened. It was as if she was at least offering Yosuke a chance to ask for something.

Yosuke coughed and cleared his throat, obviously struggling for words. He finally said, somewhat nervously, "Would you… would you like to…"

Rise did not let him finish, for she interrupted him, "I'm sorry, not today… I am in a hurry today and I have business to attend to."

_Damn… harsh. You could have just asked for an autograph._

Yosuke looked disappointed, some because he was shot down at his aggressive attempt, which Souji had to give him credit for trying something like that, and also because he was shot down before he had a chance to finish his request.

Yosuke's eyes went from Rise to Souji. Yosuke looked like he was going to say something to Souji, and if he said something about Rise… Souji did not know how to respond.

Souji would not have to worry about responding to Yosuke because Rise pulled on his left arm.

Rise's monotone voice had lowered as she said, "Souji… we're going."

_Great…_ _You're not helping._

Yosuke's eyebrows rose. Any thoughts that Yosuke might have had of Souji just walking nearby Rise dissipated when she touched Souji's arm. She did not have to touch him; it only made it more suspicious.

"I guess I will see you tomorrow, Yosuke," Souji told him as he followed a Rise who had turned away and began to leave the pair behind.

Souji sped up his walk to draw even with the girl in twin ponytails. The two stayed silent as they headed down to the Practice Building and then back into the first floor classrooms. Souji guessed it was to evade any boys that may have been searching for her; she might be doing it for his sake, too.

Souji had to find out the whole purpose of this… her finding him and all dragging him around. Yosuke would be starting some sort of rumor…

_He might be pissed… seeing me with her._

"Rise...," Souji asked, "Why did you come looking for me, and where are we going?"

Rise did not answer his questions as they went to their respective shoeboxes, only saying, "It is still raining. Do you mind sharing your umbrella?"

Souji sighed. He still had no idea what the purpose of all of this was, or where they were going… he guessed he was sharing his umbrella with Rise Kujikawa.

Pulling out his monochromatic umbrella, gray as well, he gestured to Rise to come with him. As they left the school, Souji opened the umbrella and held it over Rise. Sadly, with most of the umbrella over Rise, Souji was getting soaked.

The pair stayed silent as they walked away from the school. Souji was walking alongside with Rise, but he was really following her. He had no idea where she was going. He finally had a rough idea as to where when they neared the Samegawa River.

_So, I guess we are going to the Floodplains, but where?_

Souji wondered if she was cold… being in a short skirt and thin white blouse while it was pouring rain. Then again, he was the one being rained upon… she was not getting that wet.

When Rise and Souji reached the Floodplains, she suddenly stopped and that caused Souji to stop in a hurry.

Souji looked at Rise, and then at the nearest covered sitting area; the wooden table and two benches. "Is this where you wanted to go?" Souji asked.

Rise nodded, and the two walked over to the closest bench. Souji sat down as he closed his umbrella. He lowered his head as he shook his hair to try and get rid of some of the water that had embedded itself in his scalp.

Souji took a deep breath before saying, "Well… what is it that you wanted to talk about? It isn't what I said yesterday, is it?"

Rise sighed, "I hate being called Risette… I am not some airhead dimwit…"

_I think I would hate being called something I am not, being forced to be considered a dimwit._

Rise continued, "There's myself… and then there's what they made me. It's something where I have no control over myself. I… just want someone to look at my real self, instead of some fake Risette that everyone else sees."

"Real self?" Souji questioned.

"I don't even know if I know who I am anymore," Rise had put her head down. Souji could see pain in her eyes… in her face.

Souji said softly, "Rise…"

"I have a favor to ask you," Rise raised her head, and looked straight into Souji's eyes.

_That's never a good idea._

"What would that be?" Souji asked. He was hoping he would not regret it.

"I want to remember… to find out who I really am," Rise said, "That's why I quit." She continued, placing her hands behind her head, "I don't want a lot of people bothering me while I try to find myself, so… not for real… but, go out with me."

_Shit…_

* * *

Well, this was me writing for a little while and this is the chapter that came out. Hope you enjoyed reading the spiel. Auf Wiedersehen…


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Sadly, I do not own Persona…

There are no foggy murders here, no Shadows, no social links, and no Personas. This is about the people. At least… as far as I know. Some of the personalities are different because of the fact that there are no social links… i.e. Nanako… other personalities are different because I feel like it.

_Thoughts _

_

* * *

_

_Shit…_

Had Souji heard Rise correctly? She wanted him to pretend to be her boyfriend while she tried to find herself? What was this all about, anyways? She was basically two different people, according to what she said. It made sense… Rise and then Risette. But… wanting Souji to become her boyfriend to avoid attention from others was so different from what Rise was…

_Maybe that is how Rise really is._

What was he supposed to do though? If he accepted and basically became Rise's de facto boyfriend for the time being, all of Japan would probably asphyxiate and hound him. He was not sure if people would get jealous if did accept, but Souji had a good idea of who would be the most resentful if they found out. A good part of him wanted to stay away from this because it was not worth the possible external problems that would come with it, but the other part of him felt really bad for her… even if he did not really know Rise that well. It was just… would he really be willing to commit that much to someone like her?

_I have no idea what to do…_

Rise did not seem to wait for his answer, as her eyes never wavered from Souji's face as she said to him with almost a saddened glow, "If you do decide to 'go out with me', please pick me up at my house before school."

_Her house? She probably means the tofu shop… I think someone was trying to climb up a telephone pole when I came to visit that first day. Creepy ass pedophile bastard… But, still… What the hell…? What should I do?_

It was still pouring all around both of them, and now… the only thing Souji could hear now was the flowing Samegawa River. Rise stood and looked as if she was about to walk away. It bothered Souji, however, because she was leaving like this, and it was still raining.

"…Rise," Souji attempted to get her attention.

Rise looked at Souji again. Her face was back to that expressionless look that had permeated her mind since Souji had met her. "Yes?" she asked.

"It's still raining," Souji held out his closed umbrella, "I don't want you to get wet."

Rise closed her eyes and then gave Souji a small smile, "Thank you, Souji-kun."

Rise took the umbrella and opened it before turning back around. She moved away from the covered table and benches, leaving Souji to go home in the pouring rain.

_You know… I wonder why she left her umbrella. Was it on purpose because she knew it was going to rain and expected me to share mine with her? What if I was actually a jerk? I still don't know what I am going to do… this was just being nice. Now, I have to go home in the rain without any cover._

Souji steeled himself before starting his walk home at a quick clip. The faster he got home, the sooner he could dry off. The Dojima household could not have come into view soon enough. As soon as Souji could see it, he started running towards the home. The only person home was Nanako, and she did not appreciate a soaking wet Souji inside the home.

"Why are you all wet?" Nanako questioned, "Don't you have an umbrella?"

"Umm… I gave it away," Souji told the truth, but then said, "Actually, more like I let someone borrow it."

"Who?" Nanako looked at Souji inquisitively.

"A girl," Souji decided not to tell Nanako that he gave it to Rise.

"Ooh...," Nanako looked excited, but her look changed back to a commanding one, "But you are still all wet. You have to do something about that."

"If you get me some extra clothes from my room, I can change," Souji explained.

Nanako nodded, "I can go in your room?"

"Yes, go…," Souji nodded back.

As Nanako headed up the stairs, Souji was glad that he had not gone to the bookstore to buy one of those pin-up books. He was planning to buy one tomorrow, but he did not know if he could do that now. Besides, it would definitely be ironic if he ended up buying a Rise one.

"I got you some fresh clothes," Nanako handed him a fresh shirt and pants when she came down.

The two sat down quietly by the TV after Souji put on some dry clothes. Souji would attempt to make something in a bit. Nanako did not seem depressed, if not happy. The mood of the Dojima household changed when the door opened again and Souji's uncle came through.

"Who's that?" Nanako asked as another person came through the door behind Dojima.

_Ohh… the ace defective is here, too?_

Tohru Adachi, Dojima's partner, had come along with him. As he took off his shoes, he waved at Nanako, "Hi, my name is Tohru Adachi… I'm Dojima's gofer, no, I mean partner…"

Nanako looked a little taken aback, a little scared.

_I'd be a little scared if I was a little kid, too_

"Its okay, Nanako," Dojima smiled at her before turning at Adachi and putting on an angry face, "Don't scare my daughter, Adachi!"

"Okay…," Nanako said tentatively, while nodding in her direction. Adachi, however, said, "Sorry, Dojima-san!"

From behind his back, Dojima brought out a sack of food, "I brought Adachi along with me because I was taking him home after dealing with a big case. I brought food because… I want to make up for not being here all the time, Nanako…"

Nanako looked delighted at the prospect of real food and stood up to go wash her hands.

_Trying to make peace and fix all of your problems by offering food. I see right through you. Well… at least I will not have to try and cook tonight._

As the four of them sat down to eat food that was not processed for once, the conversation became rather lively.

"Finally, the crowd around the city is starting to die down," Adachi said, "I've been so tired waving these cars through and telling people to get out of the way."

"The issue was that it took up over half of our police force to make sure nothing happened," Dojima shook his head.

Souji asked, "Are you talking about Rise Kujikawa?"

"Rise-chan!" Nanako's eyebrows rose as she lowered her chopsticks.

Dojima stared at Souji, "I thought we talked about this, Souji."

"I understood what you said," Souji nodded.

_I don't think he would be happy if he found out that Rise has been talking to me, not me approaching Rise._

Nanako looked at Dojima, "Don't fight, dad…"

Dojima frowned, "We're not fighting…"

"I can understand why it has been so crazy out there," Adachi kept the conversation going; it was getting tense. He continued, "Rise is pretty cute, and she has so many admirers."

_Don't tell me that… Adachi is a pedo too…_

"Adachi!" Dojima yelled.

"Oh… sorry," Adachi shook his head.

Dojima scowled first at Adachi, and then at Souji, "Don't worry about Rise, just focus on your job and at school."

The mood of dinner was still a little tense, but Nanako lightened the mood. Everyone else had to lighten the mood around her.

An hour later, Adachi stood up, "I have to go. Thanks for dinner, Dojima-san."

Souji ended up studying instead of reading that night. Souji… studying; it was a miracle. Why he was studying… he did not really know. He probably just felt like it. It was probably because of all of the tumultuous events that had occurred today.

_I don't know what I'm doing. What the hell should I be doing?_

Even sleep came in spurts for Souji that night. The REM sleep was not a dream; it was a total nightmare that would have scarred him for life it was for real. When Souji woke, he was still completely exhausted besides being scared.

Nanako made him breakfast again as Souji groggily stumbled down the stairs, buttoning his shirt the wrong way twice.

_Damn buttons… Why can't we just Velcro our shirts?_

The worst part was, as he ate part of a sunny-side up egg, was that he still was not sure of what he was going to do. Maybe, his body had already decided… because he had gotten up early subconsciously.

"Bye, Nanako," Souji waved before he left Nanako for school.

_I'm even leaving for school early._

"Say hi to Rise-chan!" Nanako exclaimed.

_Does she know… or think that I'm going to see her?_

It was not as if he was leaving Nanako behind; she would be leaving a few minutes later, anyways. Even by leaving a very small amount of time before he normally did, Souji found that there were very few people around the Floodplains. Souji was not going straight through the Floodplains to school, however.

His side trip through the Shopping District had him making a beeline for Marukyu Tofu. Souji went past Daidara's to Marukyu where a girl with red ponytails stood, legs spread apart and back leaning very slightly against the building.

_I'm only doing this… because I am a nice person. I am not doing this because I am infatuated with her and I am not doing this to be a sick person and take advantage of her. When she finds herself… whoever she is really is, this whole thing will be over._

"Souji-kun," Rise gave a small smile before it disappeared into her usual state of dreariness, "I didn't expect you to come. If I asked someone else, though…"

"Don't get me wrong…," Souji shook his head, "I didn't come for that reason."

"I understand," Rise nodded, "That's why I thought you might come."

Souji covered a yawn before looking straight at Rise, implying that they should start heading towards to school. Rise pushed herself off the building with her shoulders and they began to walk, side-by-side, towards Yasogami High.

It had never felt more awkward walking with Rise. Before, it was as if they were just acquaintances that were just walking along the city. Now, Souji was pretending to go out with Rise Kujikawa. If that it was not awkward enough, wait till the rest of the school found out… wait until the rest of the city found out.

The two of them were silent, like it was awkward to be together. Finally, Rise decided to talk to Souji, "Souji-kun, I want to explain something."

Souji looked at her, "I'm listening."

"We need to make this relationship look real, right?" Rise asked.

Souji shrugged, "I guess so."

_What is she getting at?_

"Hand holding, linking arms, hell… I'll kiss you if I need to," Rise explained, but she continued, "But… I am not sleeping with you to try and prove a point."

_Well… wasn't expecting that._

"I wasn't planning on sleeping with you, Rise-chan," Souji replied, trying to contain the small amount of surprise coming from her words.

Rise nodded, but her eyes said differently. It was as if she still did not completely Souji. Even if Souji acted calm, caring, and friendly; he would try and take advantage of her.

Souji reiterated, "I am doing this for one reason, Rise-chan. I'm doing this to help you."

Rise gave that small smile she had shared with him a few times before. Souji enjoyed seeing her smile, only because it was weird to see Rise being so depressed.

_Maybe being so depressed is Rise's… her true self? But who… she still seems so melancholy._

They were nearing the Yasogami High, the school that bored Souji and was a place where Rise was overwhelmed. As the two neared one-hundred meters from the metal fences and they were approaching more students as well, Rise interlocked the fingers from her left hand with Souji's right hand.

_Umm… _

Rise whispered to Souji as they were walking, "It has to be believable. We can worry about everything else after school."

They had no problem making it believable, at least the others' opinion of whether if it was real or not. Passing people and making jaws drop was the norm as Souji and Rise neared the school. No one seemed to believe they were real.

As the two passed the metal gate, a girl with short black hair whispered to another, "Is that Souji Seta and Rise Kujikawa holding hands? Are they going out or something?"

"What! Risette has a boylfriend! She just came here," a boy with dyed shoulder-long blond hair lamented.

They continued on through to the school. Souji was hoping that the charade would continue without a hitch, but he still felt… he felt ill at ease with the whole situation.

"Souji Seta has a girlfriend," a girl walking up the stairs that had a crush on Souji and was not happy, "It's with Rise Kujikawa!"

At the edge of the stairs, Rise stopped and let go of Souji's hand. She gave one of those small smiles and said to him, "I have to go to class before I am late. You should too…"

Souji nodded, "See you after school, Rise-chan. I don't have any sort of clubs, so…"

Rise just nodded in return.

As Rise headed towards her first-year class, Souji headed up to classroom 2-2. He knew that it be foolish of him to hope that the word about his "relationship" had not spread to his own classroom. It was as if every eye was staring straight at Souji as he entered the room.

The girl closest to the room, another girl with shoulder length black hair and a yellow headband, "Are you really dating Rise Kujikawa?"

_Oh… Shit… Umm…_

"Yes, I guess I am," Souji responded.

"Wow… I don't believe it," the girl replied.

The girl's boyfriend, a boy with short black hair said, "How could you be dating Risette?"

"Aww… man," another boy muttered, "Now I can't ask her out…"

If a few stares and a couple of muttering fools were the only problems Souji had to face, he would have no problems putting up with this. It was when Yosuke came into the room that he had a bit of an issue.

As Yosuke came up to Souji's desk, he looked almost in shock and nearly tripped over Souji's bag. He asked Souji, "What's this about you going out with Risette?"

Souji explained, "Well… I am going out with Rise."

"But how?" Yosuke continued, "I asked her yesterday and she shot me down like it was nothing. When did you ask her?"

Souji had to keep up this game, so he said, "I did not ask her… she asked me after school, yesterday."

Yosuke had turned from being in shock to indignant, "She asked you! Why would she ask you?"

"She wanted to, I guess," Souji replied, "I don't know why."

_I am not telling you the truth, Yosuke._

Souji wondered if King Moron had found out about their relationship because Morooka was being a complete bastard today, especially to him. Maybe, the teacher thought it fun to make Souji suffer because he was trying to help someone else.

Souji knew he probably should go to Rise as soon as class got out. No clubs that he was involved in met today, so there was no problem with going straight there. That's why as he went straight towards the stairs after the end of class all he had were his thoughts.

_Ignore their stares… But man… Yukiko looking at me like that is weird. Does she know?_

As his thoughts said, Yukiko stared at him in-between each class. He had an inkling that Yukiko had a slight crush on him; Chie only fueled that idea.

The girl waiting for Souji almost had an aura around her that made others wait for her commands. That was his "girlfriend"… and he walked straight to her.

"So… do you have anything you really need to do, anywhere you need to go?" Souji asked as he walked to her side.

"Not really," Rise responded, "Let's just go for a walk, okay?"

"Let's go," Souji smiled.

Rise and Souji walked through the gathering crowd and out of the school while holding hands at that.

_This is weird._

As the two cleared the school, Souji looked at Rise. He was tired of the silence that permeated between the two of them. "So… how did you become a model/idol?"

"An idol?" Rise looked at Souji. She explained, "Souji-kun… I used to be really quiet and… I used to have no self-confidence. People could pick on me… and I would do nothing about it."

"Do you mean quiet, like now?" Souji questioned.

Rise nodded… She continued, "One day… my aunt sent in an audition form without my knowledge and I before I knew it, I got a call back."

"That must have been unexpected," Souji said before asking, "Do you regret it now?"

"I don't know," Rise answered. She said, "They said I was the next big thing and a few days later I was modeling and singing."

"Is that something you really wanted to do?" Souji asked, "Sing… act… and have pictures taken of you?"

Rise looked at him, "I… I don't know. I wanted to become more social, but not to make myself a ditzy girl named Risette."

"This is not what you wanted, right?" Souji questioned.

Rise did not answer, but Souji knew her answer. This was the last thing she wanted… to be a little dumb girl; this was not her.

As they passed the Yomenaido Bookstore, Souji felt Rise hold onto his right arm and clench. Her head was resting against Souji's right shoulder.

"Huh?" Souji whispered. He was confused.

Rise whispered back, "Someone is coming."

Souji thought it was someone important, like Yosuke or someone else that mattered, but instead it was just some old couple.

_False alarm…_

Rise let go of both Souji's arm and his hand as the old couple passed.

"Sorry about that," Rise said to him, "I know it is a little silly that we have to play this game."

"It's okay," Souji responded.

"Thank you, by the way," Rise smiled, "For helping me…" She continued, "You are staying with your uncle, right?"

"You're welcome," Souji responded and said, "And yes, I am staying with my uncle and cousin Nanako."

"I think I have something we can do," Rise said to him.

"Hmm?" Souji looked a bit confused.

"I want to say hi to them," Rise gave something that Souji thought might be a genuine smile.

_Dojima won't like this…_

* * *

I wrote this chapter as I am getting ready for another game… I finally have my pairings for the P3 novel. Now… I just have to finish the story. If you are interested in my poll, I believe I have an idea for the next interesting off the wall story… but it has turned into a crossover if I write it; nothing too crossover-like, and nothing with characters from a another world. Auf Wiedersehen…


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Sadly, I do not own Persona…

There are no foggy murders here, no Shadows, no social links, and no Personas. This is about the people. At least… as far as I know. Some of the personalities are different because of the fact that there are no social links… i.e. Nanako… other personalities are different because I feel like it.

_Thoughts _

_

* * *

_

_Can this get any more awkward? I swear, if I had a middle name… that is what it would be._

Walking towards the Dojima household, Souji was praying that he did not pass anymore people that would force his faux-girlfriend to grab hold of his arm. It was all spurious; he did not really care, but it was annoying all the same.

Souji also felt he finally knew Rise a little better now. She was tired of living a lie, a fake life as some manufactured creation known as Risette. Souji was sad to see her as a shell of what Rise said she was before she became a model; a girl depressed, tired, and melancholy. Even if it was not a goal of Souji to actually date Rise… he just wanted to help her out.

As the white home of the Dojima household came into view, Souji said to her, "Well… here it is."

Souji walked ahead of Rise to open the door, and the one waiting in the living room was his cousin, Nanako. "Nanako, we're home!" Souji proclaimed.

"We're home?" Nanako looked confused as Souji took his first step into the home.

Rise took a step from behind to the side of Souji. Her voice was actually somewhat cheerful as she greeted, "Hi, Nanako-chan!"

Nanako seemed to recognize the voice, even if it was not completely natural, "Rise-chan!"

Souji walked to the kitchen to grab drinks, Rise made her way into the living room. Nanako had walked up right to her and seemed really excited. If they shared one thing, it was ponytails. The two had no problem chatting to each other about various things; Souji had never seen her this lively since she had come to Inaba about recovering and resting from being an idol.

As Souji went over to hand a drink to both Rise and Nanako, Nanako asked the ex-idol, "Rise-chan, why are you here?"

"I wanted to meet you," Rise responded, "Souji's cousin."

"How do you know him?" Nanako asked.

Rise looked at Souji, and then back at Souji. Rise answered Nanako with one of those smiles, "Well… I'm Souji's girlfriend."

Nanako looked in shock upon hearing that her cousin was going out with Rise Kujikawa. It did not seem real to her.

"You're going out with Rise-chan?" Nanako asked Souji.

_You know… I didn't think about this earlier, but… We've been 'going out' for a day and now she's at my house. Great…_

Souji nodded, "It's true…"

"That's amazing," Nanako said to both of them, "I think it's cute."

Rise smiled at Souji; it was about the fact that he was keeping up this faux-relationship… even around his own family.

Souji looked at Nanako and asked, "Do you know if your dad is coming home today?"

"Umm… I think he is," Nanako replied, "He said he was coming home later tonight."

_I guess I am not getting out of introducing Rise to Dojima._

Nanako suddenly stood up from her sitting position at the table and asked Rise, "Uhh… Can I go get something for you to sign?"

Rise looked to Souji and then back at Nanako, "Sure!"

As Nanako ran upstairs to find something for Rise to sign, Souji had to talk to her. It was about Rise's sharp change in personality. Souji looked into her brown-ish eyes and asked, "Rise-chan, why are you so cheerful around little kids?"

Rise's smile was not quite as vibrant as before when Nanako left, but her answer was cheerful, "I love little kids. I'm just more comfortable around them because they are so nice and friendly." Her smile vanished and her cheery tone died, "There's another reason… but please… wait till later."

_It's just something else I have to wait for her let down her guard…_

It's to be expected as Nanako came down with one of those idol photos that you could buy at the bookstore and Souji said, "Okay, I'll wait…" that Dojima walked into the home.

"I'm home, Nanako," Dojima greeted, "I'm sorry I'm late… Another guy called in sick tod…"

Dojima's words were cut short as he spotted Nanako walking over to Rise with the photo and pen in hand.

Dojima's eyes darted from Rise, to Souji, and then back to Rise… He said, "I did not know we were having company today."

Rise smiled at Nanako and quickly signed the picture 'Risette' that displayed her in an orange and yellow blouse with white skirt displaying a peace sign with her right hand. She stood up and walked over to the detective, who was slightly surprised at the fact that Rise Kujikawa was in his home, and bowed. "You are Souji's uncle, right? I'm Rise Kujikawa… his girlfriend."

The slight surprise that Dojima was feeling had been replaced by greater surprise. It seemed that Souji had ignored his warnings about not bothering Rise; Souji had asked her out and she was now at his home. What had Souji done?

_I knew this was a bad idea…_

"Ryotarou Dojima," Dojima responded, "I was unaware that Souji had a girlfriend."

"It's only been for a day," Rise smiled.

"And he's already brought you to our home," Dojima commented.

Rise knew that this was a possible attack on Souji, so she defended, "I asked him to… so I could meet his cousin and you, of course." Rise added, "I think Nanako is adorable."

Dojima wanted to smile at her compliment, but still… Souji did something, interfered somehow…

"Did you want to stay for dinner?" Dojima asked Rise, asking out of kindness.

Rise looked at Souji for the shortest time possible before answering, "Ohh… I should really head back. I should help my grandmother, and I don't want to inconvenience you."

Dojima questioned, "Are you sure?"

Rise nodded, "I need to help close the shop."

"If you're sure," Dojima said. The detective looked at Souji, "If you are her boyfriend, you should walk her home."

_He's right… I should walk her home._

Rise turned around, "You don't have to walk me all the way back. It looks like it's going to start raining soon."

_That's just another reason to walk you back… If I don't, Dojima will be pissed._

Souji shook his head, "I should walk you back… let's go."

Dojima frowned, but Rise smiled at Souji. As Souji walked up and past Rise, she turned around to Nanako and waved, "Bye Nanako!"

Nanako exclaimed cheerfully, "Bye Rise-chan!"

Souji opened the door for Rise as the two left the Dojima household. Dojima muttered as went through, "What is going on here?"

The pair of 'boyfriend and girlfriend' walked side-by-side away from Dojima's home and towards the Shopping District. Souji hoped that this was enough to convince Rise, his cousin, and his uncle. He thought Rise put on a good show; it was not like she was not used to it, though.

She looked at Souji, "Thanks… for not telling the truth to your family."

"Did you really think I would share your secret?" Souji responded, walking besides her.

She frowned, "I'm sorry… that I doubted you that first day, and that… I yelled at you that second day."

Souji shook his head, "Let's just worry about the present, not the past."

_Well, forgive and forget… right?_

"Thanks," Rise nodded.

They were always a 'couple' that all but stayed silent during these walks. As they neared the Northern Shopping District, there was no conversation between the two. This time, it did not bother Souji. If they were a real couple, he would be enjoying a pretty girl's company. In this case, Souji was able to collect his thoughts as he walked a girl home.

_How am I going to explain myself to Dojima without him yelling at me for 'going' out with Rise when he asked me not to interfere with her life so she could rest?_

"A word please!" A man was running towards Rise and Souji.

The man was dressed in black slacks and black button-up and had a camera around his neck; he was a paparazzi. Souji saw Rise's face as he looked back. The look on Rise's face was one of panic and fear. He could tell that she did not want to speak with the man, and speaking with the paparazzi would be a flashback to her life as an idol.

Souji grabbed hold of Rise's hand, linking his fingers with hers, and started running away with her towards the Southern Shopping District. The paparazzi, seeing this, started running and yelled, "This man… is he your boyfriend!"

_It seems like we're always running from somebody._

They kept running as fast as they could, but the paparazzi member could run fast for someone who was obviously not an athlete. As he ran past Aiya's, he inquired, "Are you planning on returning to modeling in the near future!"

_Leave us alone already…_

Souji did not let go of Rise's hand until they reached Marukyu Tofu. By running to the tofu shop, they escaped the photographer and possible invasive questions. At the edge of the tofu store, Souji faced Rise and nodded. He smiled, "I think we're okay… for now."

"For now…," Rise smiled. She wiped a little sweat off her brow, "I'm just glad you're quick thinker."

Souji was glad to see that smile, but he had to say, "I should probably get back or my uncle will get suspicious."

"Goodbye, Souji-kun," Rise turned away to walk into the tofu shop.

"Goodbye, Rise-chan."

"Oh…," Rise cut in as Souji started his walk back, "Don't worry about picking me up tomorrow, or waiting for me after school!"

_I want to make this walk back a slow one, but I can't. If I take too long, who knows what my uncle will accuse me of?_

It took a little longer to get back to the household than it did to walk to Marukyu; that was mainly because they were being chased by nosy photographer/paparazzi that wanted to interview them.

As soon as he entered the two-floor white home, Nanako was already upstairs, and the only one waiting for Souji was Ryotarou Dojima. The stern-looking man was waiting for him, sitting at the wooden table by the kitchen. Souji knew Dojima had questions for him, so he sat down across from him, and waited for the interrogation.

"I have dinner waiting for you," Dojima told Souji, "Though… I'd like to ask you a few questions first."

_Here we go…_

"Okay…," Souji responded.

"Did you really ask out Rise Kujikawa?" Dojima asked. He reprimanded his nephew, "I thought I told you not to bother her."

Souji sighed, "She asked me out, not the other way around."

"She could not have asked you out if you did not introduce yourself to her," Dojima explained.

"It's not as complicated as you think," Souji lied through his teeth.

"I don't really believe you," Dojima said.

Souji shrugged, "That's how it worked."

"Don't you think you going out with her is going to cause more trouble with the paparazzi with her than ever before?" Dojima questioned.

"I don't think that's her biggest worry right now," Souji was telling the truth this time.

"Can you deal with the added pressure of going out with someone like a Rise Kujikawa?" Dojima inquired.

_I don't know if I am dealing with it very well right now._

"I'm doing my best," Souji tried to smile.

"Are you going to take advantage of her?" Dojima asked, "She's a model, after all… You might be able to take advantage of her."

Souji expected that question; he was waiting for it. He responded, "I would never do something like that. I told her that straight out."

"I don't want you to say that to her and then go back on your word later on," Dojima said.

_That would be terrible of me. I would never think of doing that._

"That thought has not even crossed my mind," Souji nodded.

Dojima nodded as well and picked up the newspaper, "Okay… treat her well. If you don't…"

When Souji finally went upstairs, he was too tired from the interrogation by Dojima and the late dinner to even watch TV. He fell asleep before a certain TV program came on the air. It was a TV program that the paparazzi/photographer put together with the TV crew he was with.

"It seems that Rise Kujikawa, otherwise known as Risette, on a hiatus in the small town of Inaba now has gotten herself a boyfriend already. The boy has silver hair and seems to be older than her. The pair ran away before we had a chance to interview them, which means who knows what Risette and her new boy toy are up to? Are they doing all sorts of interesting things?"

In the big city, an adult with short brown hair and blue clothes stood up from where he was sitting. "I need to bring her back into show business."

It seemed that a day without worrying about picking up Rise should be easier, right? Souji found out that though it was an easier walk to school with fewer eyes on him. As soon as he reached his classroom, there was still Yosuke staring at him. He still seemed a little spiteful that Rise was going out with him. Mooroka was being a jack-ass too…

_Descartes, my ass_

Every other teacher had questions for him… questions that he did not have time to study for. He looked like an ass because he was being interrogated last night and could not answer the questions the teachers asked today.

Since Souji had leeway after school; he decided to go to basketball practice. There was a little teasing as he got changed, but not many people seemed to care that he was 'going out' with Rise Kujikawa.

They were doing lay-up lines when Kou started joking around with Souji, "So… is Rise a good kisser?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Souji asked as he put up a lay-up. He mainly said that… because he didn't know.

The guy behind Souji said, "I'd like to find out."

Kou laughed at that, but Souji continued, "Are you trying to distract me?"

"Really?" Kou questioned, "How'd you figure that out?"

Souji smirked as Kou was getting ready to start to put up a shot, "Next time, I'll ask Chie to come to practice. She is my friend, you know?"

Kou sputtered and tripped over his own feet. That caused everyone to laugh, including Kou.

A fourth guy said to Souji, "I bet Risette gets really jealous. I doubt she'll even let you talk to Chie anymore."

_You know… I bet he's right._

Kou went with Souji to Aiya's after practice. Daisuke was busy cleaning up after the soccer team because they were even lazier than the other team, if possible.

_It is kind of nice… to do something like we used to, every once in a while._

That thought was weird, as he ate his noodles, because Rise had only been here for less than a week.

Souji decided to take a slight detour after eating at Aiya's. He wandered aimlessly past Shiroku to Marukyu. He found Rise working inside the store with all of the varieties of tofu.

"Rise-chan," Souji greeted.

"Souji-kun," Rise waved, but she was not smiling. She asked, "Are you free tomorrow?"

_I think so…_

"I believe I am," Souji nodded.

"Can we go shopping?" Rise asked.

_I don't wanna go shopping!_ _I don't have a choice, do I…?_

"Sure…"

"Yay!" Rise smiled for the first time today.

He was now stuck shopping on his day off. There was no getting out of it either. Souji did not bother studying, working, or anything of the sort when he got back. All he did was chat with Nanako, who was so much more cheerful since talking to Rise. Souji had a feeling this was not the last time Rise would be talking with Nanako.

_Unless… this faux-relationship ends sooner than later._

Rise was picked up on Sunday by Souji early before noon. She was wearing an orange blouse and Capri pants. They started walking towards the bus station as soon as they walked away from the tofu shop.

_Yosuke would be so jealous if she saw her with me._

The pair's Sunday escapade took them to Okina City. Souji did not like shopping at all. At least he did not have to carry fifteen bags around. All Rise did was try things on and shake her head.

"I'm sorry Souji," Rise shook her head as they reached the Southern Shopping District, "I wanted to find some new summer clothes, a new swimsuit, but they did not have anything."

"It's okay," Souji was being nice.

"Next time, I'll ask your opinion," Rise smiled. She had been smiling a lot recently.

As they were walking together, they came upon a man in brown hair and blue clothes. The sight from the far distance scared Rise a little. "Do you think it's a reporter… you know, like before?"

"Do you want me to do something about it?" Souji asked.

"No, no…," Rise shook her head.

At that, Rise walked forward and Souji followed. Rise immediately recognized the man as she closed the distance. "Inoue-san!" she exclaimed, "Why are you here? I have nothing to do with the agency anymore."

"Rise-chan," the man named Inoue said, "I just can't accept that... that's why I am here."

_Really now?_

"I've watched over you this entire time as your manager," Inoue continued.

Souji could see Rise's eyes glistening as she yelled, "I'm not Risette anymore! I can do what I want now! If you don't leave, I'll call the police!"

"Huh?" Inoue looked confused. He tried to regain his confidence, "Just… no one can play the role in that movie like an actress named Rise Kujikawa. They were all looking forward to that movie... your fans were."

"I'm not acting anymore," Rise shook her head.

_Pushy bastard…_

Inoue looked confused as Rise exclaimed, "I'm done with showbiz! I have nothing to do with that stuff anymore!"

"Huh?" Inoue looked around.

Rise's eyes started glistening again as she looked at Souji, "I… I am marrying this man once we graduate high school!" Rise grabbed hold of Souji's arm as both of Inoue and Souji looked slightly confused by Rise's actions. She continued, "I said it was a hiatus, but I'm not coming back! I'm never coming back!" Rise explained, "Souji's kind, caring, and understanding."

_Damn… how'd it come to this? I hope she doesn't really expect me to faux-marry her._

She whispered, "Please… just go along with this for now. I'm just saying it to him. I'll do anything for you if you do this… anything. I'll make out with you… kiss you silly, please…"

_She is desperate… What do I do?_

"What can I say? I am in love with her," Souji said. He continued, "We will marry after she finishes high school."

"I told you, Inoue-san," Rise nodded.

Inoue looked defeated, "I'll go home, today…"

"Go!" Rise yelled, seeing that Inoue did not leave immediately.

Inoue left in a hurry and Rise turned to Souji and wiped away any of the tears that had accumulated on her face, "That was my manager, Inoue-san. He's not my manager now, obviously. I don't want anything to do with them anymore."

_That's a good thing._

Rise clutched Souji's arm again, for no apparent reason this time. She said to him with a real smile, "Thank you… I have to keep thanking you because you do so much for me. You lied for me, even about marrying me."

_You said you wanted to find yourself, but you can't do that if you are interrupted by outside distractions. Just… find something that makes you happy._

Souji smiled back, "You're welcome."

* * *

This chapter brought to you from the desk of RionAgrias. Auf Wiedersehen


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Sadly, I do not own Persona…

There are no foggy murders here, no Shadows, no social links, and no Personas. This is about the people. At least… as far as I know. Some of the personalities are different because of the fact that there are no social links… i.e. Nanako… other personalities are different because I feel like it.

_Thoughts _

_

* * *

_

Souji was a bit worn out after his little… event this past afternoon. Souji went shopping all over Okina City, but they did not buy a single thing. He then lied to Rise's manager, saying that he was going to marry the ex-idol after they graduated from high school. It was so god damn pointless in Souji's eyes. It was all for her though…

_Heh… She promised to make out with me if I said to that guy that I was going to marry him. Imagine if Yosuke was in my position. He probably would have thrown his tongue in her mouth before she had a chance to open it._

That was why when he returned to his temporary home in Inaba… he was not so sure he wanted to do anything but go to sleep, even when his younger cousin greeted him fondly.

"Welcome back!" Nanako said.

"Hey…," Souji returned.

Souji sighed as he made his way to the fridge and pulled out a soda. Nanako told him as he turned around, "You look tired…"

_No kidding…_

"I am pretty tired," Souji said, "It was an eventful day."

"Did you see Rise-chan today?" Nanako asked.

Souji answered, "I did."

"I liked meeting her; she nice," Nanako said. She continued, "All of my friends were so jealous that I met her."

"So, you like her, right?" Souji asked and got a nod out of Nanako. He continued, "Are you disappointed… I mean are you disappointed that she's not singing or acting anymore?"

Nanako was thinking for a second, but she finally answered, "I do, but I'm happy to see her here. I'm happy to see her with you."

Souji did not know what to say. How would anyone know what to say to something like that? How would she react if she found out that he was not really going out with Rise; that it was all just a ploy to rebuild her life? "Thanks, Nanako-chan," Souji replied.

Nanako smiled, "I hope I can see her again soon."

Souji smiled, "I think she would like to come back, too."

That seemed to make Nanako extremely happy and Souji was able to slip away after a few more minutes up to his room and into bed. He was did not study, did not watch TV, and did not bother translating. His futon is the only thing that he enjoyed when he entered his room.

_I hope there are not many more crazy days like this one. Rise might drive me insane._

Souji did not meet Rise on the way to school on the first day of this week. He passed quite a few students on the way to Yasogami while walking along the Samegawa Floodplains. The students did not seem as interested in Souji's relationship with Rise by this day.

Class, however, was as tense as ever. It was a matter of dealing with Yosuke, the boys who all knew he was going out with Rise, and Yukiko. He was not sure, but Yukiko might go and try and start a catfight with Rise somehow. Souji had heard from Chie that Yukiko had a hidden mean streak. He also knew that he could not interfere by trying and stopping Yukiko because if Rise saw him… his "girlfriend" could always misinterpret it and cut off both Yukiko's and his head.

Standing up after Hosoi drilled him about literature and the bells rang, Souji stretched his sore limbs. He was not sure what he was going to do today after class. Monday's were usually devoid of activities like basketball, but if he felt like returning to the drama club…

_That Yumi girl will be there… maybe I shouldn't bother. I'm not even sure if Rise is around._

"Souji!" a sharp male voice that Souji immediately recognized called out to him.

Souji sighed. He knew that whatever Yosuke wanted was going to be confrontational. Souji turned slightly to see the boy with headphones around his neck looking impatient with his arms crossed. His slight smirk had been absent for days now, "What is it, Yosuke?"

"I want to talk to you about Risette," Yosuke said.

Souji responded, "I don't know anyone named Risette."

Souji turned around at that. He really did not know anyone named Risette. She was Rise Kujikawa, at least that was what she was now.

Before he could leave, Yosuke retorted, "Don't leave, Souji! You know what I'm talking about! You don't deserve your girlfriend!"

Souji tried to ignore him, tried to exit 2-2 with his bag over his shoulder, but before he could leave the classroom… he was bombarded by Kou Ichijo from 2-1.

"Souji!" Kou greeted him, drowning out Yosuke, "Guess what!"

_Have I been rescued… or is this only the next angle of my hell?_

"Yes?" Souji asked, trying to talk to only Kou.

"The gym is open today," Kou explained, "We can go to basketball if you want."

_Basketball… it's a lot better than dealing with Yosuke._

"Sounds good, Kou," Souji smiled.

Souji left Yosuke behind with Kou, and he was more than happy to. He never thought an outlet away from the craziness would be basketball; it was something that he used to be so bored with.

When they started a pick-up game between six members, only six people showed up, Souji was a bit more excited and upbeat than usual. His shots would not miss and his passes were spot-on.

"Souji! I'm open!" Kou yelled.

"One second," Souji bounce-passed the ball behind his back and allowed Kou to put in the winning lay-up.

After a high-five, Souji felt his adrenaline wear off. He started to breathe heavily and wanted to sit down, but it would have been a bad idea. He was not staggering, but he was not walking very quickly.

"Hey Souji, you alright?" Kou asked, holding the ball in his arm.

"Just tired…," Souji answered, "I'm fine."

"Daisuke and I are going to Aiya's afterwards, are you coming?" Kou bounced the ball idly.

He was not exactly of what he should do, but it was getting pretty late and he had to make a decision pretty soon.

_Should I try getting a hold of Rise and seeing if she wants to talk to me? If she had come to me earlier I would have tried already. I should probably just go to Aiya's. _

A young man in a light blue track suit walked up behind the pair. He must have known what Souji was thinking because he said, "Invite your girlfriend, man."

"Daisuke, bro…," Kou said, "You know Rise-chan can't eat at Aiya's. It's like eating lard."

_I don't think she cares at this point._

"We don't gain any weight from eating there," Daisuke retorted, "Rise-chan won't either."

"That's because the three of us are always exercising at club," Kou explained.

_I know how to deal with this._

"If I can get a hold of her, I'll ask," Souji said.

"Really?" Daisuke actually looked a bit excited, "Okay then."

Daisuke walked away and Kou looked back at Souji, "I didn't know Daisuke was that excited about Rise-chan."

Souji just shrugged, "I'm going to see if I can find her. I'll meet you two at Aiya's, regardless of the outcome."

_Should I check Marukyu's for her?_

Souji ended up heading towards the Southern Shopping District after changing out of his sweaty basketball clothes. He left only a little later after Kou, but his detour towards the tofu shop would force him to arrive after the members of the soccer and basketball club.

When Souji entered Marukyu, the only one inside was Rise's grandmother. He was left wondering where his 'girlfriend' was.

"Excuse me; have you seen Rise-chan?" Souji tried to get Rise's grandmother's attention.

The wizened old lady shook her head, "I'm sorry, she has not shown up today."

"Oh… thanks," Souji said slowly.

Before Souji could go look for Rise somewhere else, and he was thinking about giving up; Rise's grandmother stopped him by saying, "Are you that Souji-kun that Rise-chan talks about all the time?"

_She talks about me? Why?_

"Uhh… I guess so," Souji shrugged.

"She thinks so highly of you," she explained. Rise's grandmother was about to say more when…

"Souji-kun!" Souji was crushed from behind by a pair of slender arms.

"Rise-chan… you're home from school," the owner of the tofu shop smiled.

"What are you doing here, Souji-kun!" Rise asked. She added, "Sorry, I'm late, grandma!"

"It is okay, Rise-chan," Rise's grandmother said.

"So, Souji-kun," Rise had still not removed her arms from around Souji, "Why are you here?"

"My friends wanted to know if you wanted to go to Aiya's with me, but one of them didn't think you would be able to," Souji choked out. He was suffocating out of the strain from Rise's arms.

"I can eat at Aiya's! I'm not an idol anymore!" Rise exclaimed, taking her arms away from Souji.

"I never said you couldn't," Souji answered.

Souji turned towards Rise… and saw that she was smiling, "Let's go, Souji-kun!" She grabbed hold of his hand and tugged him away from Marukyu's. "Bye, Grandma!"

"Goodbye, Rise-chan!" the grandmother responded as she waved her granddaughter away.

_I guess that answer's that, but I'm being dragged away!_

Souji ended up in walking in a fast pace towards the Northern Shopping District holding Rise's hand. She had stopped dragging him; she must have decided there was no need to after pulling him away from Marukyu's. They passed not only Shiroku, but multiple run-down stores because of Junes's influence on Inaba's economy.

Rise seemed to notice that Souji's neck was sore because she asked, "Are you okay, Souji-kun? I didn't hurt you, did I?"

Souji shook his head, "I'm okay; I can still talk."

"Souji-kun…," Rise smiled.

"How are you feeling today? Better?" Souji asked, nearly at the entrance of Aiya's.

Rise stopped, forcing Souji to stop as well. She looked straight at Souji, "I feel a lot better today. I wouldn't if you were not there yesterday."

Souji couldn't think of anything to say, at least anything smart to say. Rise seemed to realize that, just smiled at him and continued onward towards Aiya's with Souji's fingers interlocked with hers.

_This faux-relationship is getting weird._

Souji found Kou and Daisuke waiting for them outside of Aiya's. He was a bit unsure of what their reactions would be of meeting Rise. Would they use this opportunity to tease him, try and get information out of Rise, or in fact, accidently blow his cover?

"Souji!" Kou called out, "I see you found her!"

"You doubted me?" Souji responded.

Rise cut in, "You guys were second-guessing each other on whether you could find me?"

Souji turned to his 'girlfriend', "Of course not."

"Rise-chan!" the other person besides Kou had run up to Rise and Souji, "I'm so happy to finally meet you!"

Souji decided to introduce the basketball-playing fool, "This is my friend, Daisuke Nagase."

Rise waved with the hand that was not linked with Souji, "Hello, Daisuke-senpai."

Daisuke looked happy that Rise acknowledged his presence, but Souji just shook his head regarding the whole matter.

"So… are we going to eat?" Kou asked.

"Alright! Let's go!" Rise squeezed Souji's hand rather hard.

The four entered Aiya's and oddly enough, ordered the same thing. When their noodles with beef and vegetables arrived, Souji was starving. He was not the only one that must have been very hungry because the other three were already attacking their own dishes.

Kou looked up. He must have noticed something interesting as he asked Rise, "No one has come up and asked you for an autograph or anything like that. Do you think that is weird?"

Rise answered, "You didn't notice? I'm not wearing makeup today."

"Really?" Daisuke looked up at Rise, shocked, "I couldn't tell. You must always look that pretty."

Rise smiled at Daisuke, "Why thank you, Daisuke-senpai."

_I couldn't tell either. I'm probably just used to seeing her everyday._

"So… would you mind if I never came back to being Risette?" Rise suddenly asked Kou and Daisuke.

"Huh?" Kou looked confused.

"What!" Daisuke looked shocked, "You're going to quit being an idol for good!"

_I knew they would react like this. Was it too soon to ask them? Probably too soon…_

"It's just a question," Rise said innocently.

"You probably shouldn't say things like that," Kou said, "My sister would be crushed to hear you quit permanently."

"It's scary enough to know there's nothing new coming on with you in it for the time being," Daisuke shook his head, "Now… maybe forever?"

"Don't be stupid, Daisuke," Souji told him, but his statement was meant for both of them in actuality, "It was only a hypothetical question."

Kou sighed, "Yeah… you're right. I don't know what Rise-chan should do."

"Me either," Rise shook her head, but she gave a small smile.

The four continued their meal without a lot of speech. Rise thought about speaking to the person on the left of her; the man who was her 'boyfriend', but she decided against it. Souji also had thoughts of speaking to Rise about his ideas about future plans, but he would not want to discuss it in front of Kou and Daisuke.

"That was good," Daisuke finished his bowl, "I'm thinking about seconds. How about you guys?" He looked and motioned at the other three, but his focus was mainly at the two boys who were in-between them.

It took one look between Souji and Rise to know that they were done here. There was no way they were going to have another bite. Rise decided to have the last word, "Thank you Kou-senpai, Daisuke-senpai, for inviting us here."

Kou hit Daisuke over the head, "Geez… you just had to ask Rise-chan if she wanted to have more food! She ate a bowl of noodles with us, isn't that enough?"

Souji nodded and paid the bill for both Rise and himself. Of course, it was the right thing to do. When Rise and Souji stood up, Rise grabbed hold of his hand again so they could walk out of Aiya's together. Souji guessed he was going to take Rise back to Marukyu now, back for the day.

As they headed back toward the Southern Shopping District, Souji said, "I hope that wasn't too uncomfortable for you."

"It was fun," Rise smiled at Souji, "It was nice meeting your friends."

Souji sighed, "This sounds more and more like a real relationship by every day, Rise-chan."

Rise stopped, "Souji-kun… I want to make this look like a real relationship. I want everyone believe that we are together. Okay?"

"Okay…," Souji nodded.

_It is just getting… I don't know why she's doing half of this stuff anymore._

As Rise started walking with Souji, she asked, "Do you think it was okay… asking your friends if it was okay… about quitting and all?"

"I don't know," Souji had no idea himself, "They seemed surprised by the question."

"Yeah… probably I had just met them," Rise nodded. She suddenly squeezed Souji's hand, "They don't me as well as you do."

"Probably not," Souji agreed.

"Do you agree with your friend, Daisuke-senpai?" Rise questioned.

"About what?" Souji responded.

"That I'm still pretty without my makeup on?" Rise answered.

_Put me on the spot, why don't you? This is not supposed to be about my opinions._

When Souji did not answer right away, Rise's smile disappeared. She had figured out that the question was unfair. Her hand tightened around Souji's fingers again. "I'm sorry, Souji-kun."

"It's alright," Souji said, "I think you're cute."

Rise's usual small smile gave way to a mischievous one. "You think I'm cute, huh?" Rise said to Souji, "I see how it is."

"I don't know how to respond to that," Souji shook his head.

They had arrived back at Marukyu's and the two of them had stopped in front of the tofu shop. Souji had let go of Rise's hand and had closed his eyes for the moment. He could feel a slight headache coming on. It was probably the last five days all rushing on top of him at the same time.

"Souji-kun," Rise's sly smile had not yet disappeared, "If I decide to quit being a model and actress; it will all be thanks to you. I think I'm finally finding myself because of you… a much happier self that is free to choose to do what she wants."

"Rise-chan," Souji said, "I'm just glad I can help."

_This is why I decided to help you._

"Souji!" a voice rang out, "I want to talk to you! I want to talk to you about Risette!"

Souji didn't need to turn towards the Shiroku Store to figure out who was speaking to him. He could recognize that confrontational voice anywhere. It was the same voice that confronted him earlier about Rise and he could see her too.

"Souji! I see Risette, and I want to talk to both of you!" Yosuke exclaimed.

_Shit… Not now…_

Souji was about to do something about it. He didn't really want to bring Rise into this argument, but if he had to…

_Just go into Marukyu's…_

Souji's eyes were still closed in frustration when he felt a female's lips against his own. The shock made Souji open his gray-ish eyes and connect with Rise's dark brown eyes. Her right arm was placed on his left shoulder and Souji's left arm instinctively went to her side. It was a little under seven seconds before their lips disconnected, but it felt like an hour to Souji. Rise turned away and left Souji in shock and awe as she turned to go to the tofu shop.

_Well… no one will second-guess our faux-relationship now. It will probably shut up Yosuke, too. But, damn… give a little warning next time._

Souji had to admit the kiss was pretty good.

* * *

The chapter is done! Originally, when I planned this chapter, the last scene was not in it. As you can see, it was a spur of the moment thing. I hope you enjoyed my writing. Auf Wiedersehen.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Sadly, I do not own Persona…

There are no foggy murders here, no Shadows, no social links, and no Personas. This is about the people. At least… as far as I know. Some of the personalities are different because of the fact that there are no social links… i.e. Nanako… other personalities are different because I feel like it.

_Thoughts _

_

* * *

_

Souji's thoughts were clear, yet in the same time… they were in complete disarray. His 'girlfriend' tried to prove the validity of the faux-relationship, as well as get rid of Yosuke by kissing him in front of Marukyu.

_Wasn't there any other way that we could have accomplished this? It's just so… abrupt and out of place._

Rise got the reaction she wanted out of Yosuke; he looked completely dumbfounded and lost for words, even after she had left Souji's side and entered the tofu shop. Souji approved too, if was really paying attention to Yosuke at the moment. He was mainly focusing on the lack of sanity in Inaba.

"Risette…," Yosuke muttered to no one in particular.

"I should probably see if I can escape now," Souji said quietly.

Souji decided to try and sneak by Yosuke and head towards the bus station. He just needed to travel past that weird Daidara's and the Yomenaido Bookstore and he could make his way to the bus stop… well, once he passed Moei. He could get home in a different fashion than usual.

"Souji!" Souji had only gotten halfway past Yomenaido's when Yosuke was able to find his voice.

_Dammit!_

Souji pivoted around and saw Yosuke, not fully recovered, but arms crossed and staring the silver-haired young man down, "I want to talk to you!"

"Don't you have anything else to do?" Souji muttered, "I'm tired of you chastising me about this shit."

Yosuke's face suddenly softened, "You really are going out with her, aren't you?"

"I am…," Souji looked exasperated.

Yosuke shook his head, "Why you? You don't deserve her…"

_Where is he coming up with this shit?_

"I don't deserve her!" Souji responded, "And you do!"

"Maybe… I think I do!" Yosuke countered… He huffed, "Why would she come here and then a few days afterwards, suddenly start going out with you?

_Idiot…_

"Maybe, she just saw something in me that she felt was important to her," Souji answered.

"I know you…," Yosuke all but sneered, "You didn't give a shit about this place, about anyone in this town… and now you suddenly feel like everything is important to you, including Risette!"

_I can't believe this guy! Who the hell does he think is?_

Souji raised his voice. He had had enough of Yosuke, "I don't care if you think I deserve her or not… She… chose… me! Deal with it!"

"I'm going to prove to her that she made the wrong choice," Yosuke told Souji.

Souji shook his head, "You can try, but in the end… I will still be with her."

"Bastard…," Yosuke muttered.

After turning, Yosuke walked away towards Shiroku Store and the Northern Shopping District. However, as the fluffy brown-haired young man walked away, his head was facing slightly towards Souji, glaring at him.

_Talk about melodramatic…_

Souji was sick and tired of people on his case about Rise. This last argument was probably the personification of everything that he dealt with. It used to be so calm before Rise moved her, but…

_At least she makes the days livelier._

Souji's bus ride back to the Residential District was, thankfully, uneventful. He spent his time on the bus wondering if he would be playing basketball again tomorrow or… if he would be something else. He could be doing something with Rise for all he knew. Making plans well in advance did not seem to be their style.

"Welcome back!" Nanako greeted Souji when he entered the residence.

"Good evening, Nanako-chan," Souji nodded.

Nanako looked really bored and somewhat depressed today. That's why she did not say anything after those first few words. She was just sitting alone, idly watching the news. She was probably so excited to greet him because it was something to break through the monotony.

That was the reason why Souji grabbed a juice drink from the kitchen and knelt down across from Nanako. Nanako looked rather surprised by his actions.

"What's wrong?" Souji asked his cousin, "Do you want to talk about it?"

Nanako looked rather reluctant, "Umm… umm…"

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," Souji said to her.

"Well… Why… Why do people die?" Nanako finally asked Souji.

_Wow… What a question…_

"…," Souji had to think about what to say to his cousin. He knew Nanako had lost his mother to an accident when she was young, but… what should he say?

_What's the proper thing to say to such a young girl?_

Souji finally figured out what to say, "I believe people die because it is time for that person to go to a better place."

"So… mom left me to go to a better place?" Nanako's eyes were glistening, and Souji could understand why.

Souji had to figure out what to say again, "It's a beautiful place… where she's watching over you right now."

"She's watching over me?" Nanako asked.

"Watching over you, protecting you; it is because she loves you," Souji smiled.

Souji knew Nanako felt terrible and that it took a lot of courage to ask him those questions. Why she suddenly gained the nerve to ask him this, Souji did not know. What was confusing was that Nanako seemed to have more to say, and Souji had no idea what was next.

Nanako was still in bad shape when she asked, "Umm… do you have any siblings?"

_I'm an only child, but what should I say?_

Souji smiled, "I have one now…"

Through the tears, a smile formed on Nanako's face. It seemed the act of kindness that Souji showed with his words brought a smile to her face.

"Are you my Big bro?" Nanako asked.

Souji nodded and managed to widen her smile when he added, "Only if you're my Little sis."

Dojima never came home that night, but Souji let Nanako stay up well past her bedtime. The sadness Nanako felt from asking those questions disappeared as time went on. Souji probably should have went to bed earlier and tried to put together his jumble of thoughts, but his time with Nanako may have been better for him in the long run; it was a soothing experience. He slept well that night.

The sunny-side-up eggs and toast tasted especially good the next morning, even though they were probably as good as they always were. It was probably because of the time he and his cousin spent together bonding as a real family. Souji needed to connect with someone in this house, only if because the two of them were so distant until last night.

Class went so slowly because P.E. was about exercises and even when Souji gave the correct answer to lessen the amount of wind sprints… he still ended up tiring himself out. It was fun to see Yosuke collapse and fall on his ass halfway through the running. Of course, running was not the only thing the class did; he also had to do hundreds of jumping jacks and other anaerobic exercises. Yosuke collapsed again through some of the other exercises because he did not hydrate probably.

The only other bothersome thing Souji dealt with was the death glare being given to him by Yosuke throughout the whole day. That was why he was glad when he collapsed because of improper hydration.

_Dumbass…_

Souji was thinking of going to basketball practice again; they usually met on Tuesday, so the unorthodox meeting on Monday would not matter. He was still on the fence about going, so he decided to meet up with Kou before practice to make his decision. Unfortunately, as he walked near the Practice Building stairs, Kou was not standing with Daisuke and his friends. It was just Daisuke and the others chatting away.

"Daisuke, do you know where Kou is?" Souji asked, interrupting someone who was calling him 'stupid'. He continued, "I'm trying to decide if I should go to basketball today."

"I'm not stupid!" Daisuke yelled. He noticed the silver-haired student, "Oh, sorry Souji! Can you repeat the question?"

"I'm trying to decide if I should go to basketball today. Do you know where Kou is?" Souji asked.

"Kou?" Daisuke folded his arms, "He's on the roof, trying to decide if he should ask Chie out. I think he's too chicken-shit to do it though."

Souji had to let out a laugh. It certainly cheered him up, "Thanks, Daisuke."

He turned around, ready to go the roof when Daisuke pulled on his arm, "Oh… I don't think there is basketball today. But, do you want to go to Aiya's today?"

Souji was not sure if he should go to Aiya's two days in a row. It was not only Rise who could get fat.

_Uhh… I don't know if Rise would continue this charade if I become a balloon. She certainly won't kiss me again._

"What do you think, Souji?" Daisuke asked.

"Souji-kun, do you want to hang out?" the girl Souji knew only as Rise-chan asked behind her.

"Of course," Souji turned around and answered, "I'll see you, Daisuke."

Souji turned to see his girlfriend, the girl in his school uniform that consisted of a white blouse and gray skirt with the yellow ribbon around the blouse, standing by him with a smile on her face. Grabbing Rise's hand, they headed downstairs together. What they did not see was Daisuke's face as they walked downstairs.

As they exited the school and passed the gates, Souji looked to the girl that kissed him yesterday. She had a bit of makeup on today. He wondered what had influenced her into putting on a bit of blush, a bit of eyeliner, and a small amount of lipstick on her face.

_I wonder if it was what I said yesterday. If I had said she was pretty right away yesterday, would she have stayed 'au natural'?_

Souji and Rise were walking idly, and Souji was unsure of where they were going. He had to ask Rise, "Umm… Rise-chan, where are we headed?"

"I want to overlook the town, Souji-kun," Rise replied.

"Oh… okay," Souji nodded.

"Is that alright with you?" Rise asked.

Souji smiled at Rise, "Of course it is."

_What the hell are we going to be doing here?_

The two reached the Southern Shopping District after a bit of walking. If he never met Rise, he probably would never visit the Shopping District almost every day. The two waited for the next bus that would take them to the edge of the town. The ride was slow and it would take a bit to get there. Eventually, a conversation broke out between the boy and girl.

"Souji-kun, I have a question for you," Rise said to him as they sat in the second row of the bus.

Souji looked at her, "I'm ready to answer."

"Did it bother you? Did it bother you that I kissed you yesterday?" Rise asked, "You know… It might have been weird for you because we are not really together, but I was not really sure how to get rid of that guy.

_That's what she wanted to ask?_

"Actually… it didn't get rid of Yosuke," Souji smiled.

"It didn't?" Rise responded.

"Eventually, I had to yell at him to get away," Souji nodded.

Rise looked despondent for a moment, "I'm sorry, Souji-kun."

"It is okay," Souji told her.

Rise shook her head before saying, "What about the rest of what I said?"

"Oh… well…," Souji had to think about it for a second, "Not really, I guess. Yosuke did believe we were going out afterwards."

"I see," Rise said, but she looked a little uncomfortable. Souji thought the look was that she might have done something wrong and that she hurt their friendship.

The second half of their bus ride was a trip in about complete silence. It was a bit of a bus ride, considering it was farthest trip from any other destination in Inaba. Souji was feeling a little sleepy from the late night conversations with Nanako last night when he felt Rise's head on his shoulder and her arm wrapped around his own.

_A little awkward considering this relationship is not real._

Souji had to wake Rise up when they reached the end of the line. She looked a bit embarrassed to see her arm around Souji's arm and her head on his shoulder when Souji woke her up. They walked away from the bus and towards the outlook. From the outlook that was protected only by a wooden fence, so Souji had no worries about flying towards the city because they leaned over… unless the fence broke.

Souji and Rise stood next to each other, while staring out upon Inaba and taking in the sights.

Rise spoke first, "If you asked me a year ago, I never thought I would be here."

"Me either," Souji smiled.

"That's right," Rise said, "You moved because of your parents."

"I think… I'm starting to like being here," Souji said, "Well… most of the things about Inaba."

"I think I know what you don't like," Rise winked in Souji's direction, "Hopefully, what you don't like is me."

"Would I have helped you, otherwise?" Souji asked.

Rise shook her head. She was silent for a second before saying, "I can see Marukyu from here, and I think… I can see your place."

"Really?" Souji responded, stretching his head to try and see where Rise was looking.

"Yeah…," Rise pointed to where she saw his residence.

"I like how you can see everything from here," Souji said.

Rise asked, "Can I go back to your place sometime soon? You know, to visit your cousin? I like her…"

Souji smiled, "Of course… Little sis will be really excited."

"Little sis?" Rise raised an eyebrow, "You two must have gotten really close."

"My nickname is Big bro," Souji admitted.

Rise laughed. It didn't last, though. She turned towards her faux-boyfriend and put on a serious face. She asked, "Souji-kun… if I really do quit my career for good… would it be okay with you?"

_Why do I get all of these questions?_

"You know that it is your decision and that I will not judge you for that," Souji said, "I want you to do what your heart tells you to do."

"You just have to be indecisive," Rise smirked, but she was being joking, "You just want me to be happy, right?"

"Yeah," Souji said.

A camera flash made the two of them turned around. There were at least three photographers and one man waiting to interview them. Rise's face went from a smile to horror to rage.

"What are you doing here?" Rise asked, obviously angry.

The reporter held out his microphone as pictures were taken of both Rise and Souji, "We want an interview with you and your boyfriend. What is it like to be going out with Risette? How is your hiatus going? Is having a boyfriend helping you recover? Are you coming back soon?"

Rise looked distressed, "I… I… Leave me alone."

"Please… your fans want to hear all about you. They miss you and want you back, Risette."

"I told you that I'm on hiatus," Rise said, her voice was becoming weak and shallow, "I don't want to be bothered."

_They need to leave her alone._

"Just leave her alone, dammit!" Souji had lost it and yelled at the four of them.

Rise turned towards Souji and said softly, "Souji-kun…"

"So, your name is Souji, is it?" the reporter seemed unfazed by his outburst as the cameras kept flashing, "What is it like going out with Rise Kujikawa? Is she everything you expected?"

Souji snapped, "What the hell! Do you think she is some kind of slut! Leave her alone! She wants to be alone, and if you don't leave her alone… I'll make you, dammit!"

The reporter and photographers were definitely affected by this outburst. They were affected enough to leave in a hurry. Souji knew they would run the story and that his outburst would probably be aired. Right now, Souji did not care… he was sick and tired of it all.

_What did I just do?_

Rise had tears in her eyes as she turned to him, "Souji-kun…"

* * *

This was fun, right? I hope you enjoyed this chapter because I spent hours straight on it. Auf Wiedersehen


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Sadly, I do not own Persona…

There are no foggy murders here, no Shadows, no social links, and no Personas. This is about the people. At least… as far as I know. Some of the personalities are different because of the fact that there are no social links… i.e. Nanako… other personalities are different because I feel like it.

If you have questions about why my writing is like it is, especially the order of names… read my reasoning in the chapter descriptions of Samurai and Ninjas.

_Thoughts _

_

* * *

_

Souji was gazing upon a crying Rise on the edge of Inaba. He did not believe it was his fault after all. There were three photographers that kept taking pictures and one reporter that would not shut up. This was exactly what Rise was trying to avoid.

_I think she asked me to come here because it was secluded and we could discuss things like her possible "quitting for good" in peace. Why did they have to come out there and bother us today of all days? She just wanted to be left alone and you had to bring her tears. What's wrong with them?_

Souji had lost control of his emotions. Really, he did not like yelling at people too much, but the paparazzi pushed him over the edge. He promised to help her… and if he needed to protect her, god help them.

The tears were streaming down Rise's face… Souji was not really sure what to say to the ponytailed girl standing across from her. His indecisiveness was solved when she suddenly closed the distance between them and wrapped her arms around Souji's neck.

"Why do you have to keep protecting me… keep saving me?" Rise whispered. The tears were dripping onto Souji's button-up shirt.

_At least she's not kissing me._

"Does it really matter?" Souji responded, knowing that he did not really have a great response to give.

Rise sniffled, trying to shake her head to clear the tears while still keeping her arms around Souji, "I'm not doing a very good job making this a faux-relationship while no one is around, am I?"

_No, not really…_

Rise answered her own question, "I guess I should stop doing things that require a knight in shining armor."

"Maybe," Souji said.

"You're too chivalrous," Rise muttered.

"What else was I supposed to do? Let them interview us?" Souji whispered.

Rise pursed her lips before saying, "That's the last thing I wanted them to do."

For a minute, Souji and Rise just stood there on the outlook, but Rise never detached her arms from Souji. The sun was disappearing behind dark clouds.

_Well… _

"Rise… the bus is here," Souji finally broke the silence as the bus pulled up for the return trip to the Shopping District.

Rise nodding, blushing a little, "Sorry… I didn't notice."

The two boarded the bus, which was empty, and took seats in the back. Whether the bus driver recognized either Souji or Rise, he did not know. Souji took a deep breath as the bus departed down from the outskirts of Inaba. The day's events would hopefully be over, but Souji knew… they were not.

"Souji-kun…," Rise said to Souji, "I don't know, but that reporter will probably be unkind to you tonight."

"I don't really care," Souji said, "It doesn't matter to me."

"You should," Rise explained, "They can turn you into some freak that bewitched me into going out with you."

Souji sighed, "Bewitched you?"

"Who knows what they will say about you?" Rise shrugged, "Those people are evil."

"If they want to say I'm crazy for 'pretending' to be your boyfriend… then let them," Souji replied, considering no one knew that they were pretending.

"We'll see if you still think that after they try and tear you apart because of what you said… what you did," Rise warned him.

_I should not have to tell her anymore that I don't care. If I did, I would not have said those things to them._

"Souji-kun?" Rise's tone changed completely and caught Souji's attention.

"Hmm?" Souji responded.

Rise's first response was to place her head back on Souji's shoulder like she did on the trip there. Souji had to feel a little jealous about her position; he was a bit tired, but he was a guy and was unable to do so.

"Thank you, Souji-kun," she said as she closed her eyes and linked fingers with Souji.

_She's making full use of our 'relationship'. Sometimes I wonder if she wants to go out with me for real. I'm probably just over thinking about it, but jeez…_

Souji walked Rise back to Marukyu Tofu after the bus reached the Shopping District. It was just about dark by that point, and it made Souji wonder if Rise originally wanted to watch the sunset together. That would have been a real event for couples if that happened. It was tense when the two parted because Rise looked like she did not want him to leave. Eventually, Souji made an excuse and dumped her off so he could go back to his residence and see his family. Though Souji was hungry, he was too tired to really converse or interact with his uncle or his cousin. That was why Souji headed straight for his room after having a quick dinner without spending time speaking to Nanako. He did promise to her have Rise Kujikawa over at some point, but hopefully Nanako's presence would lighten anything Rise might try.

Souji did turn on the TV before he went to bed. It was just as Rise predicted. He was a victim of the paparazzi and their imagination.

"Earlier, we found out that Risette, or Rise Kujikawa has a found herself a boyfriend. We now have a name of that illusive boyfriend, Souji Seta," the paparazzi announced, "We also found out that man is no loving and caring knight for our Risette."

_I don't remember giving my last name._

The paparazzi continued, "According to a brave man who told us of Souji's hateful actions, we learned many things from this former friend of Souji Seta."

"Souji is a spiteful man and threatens anyone who comes near his girlfriend," their witness said, "He's controlling and forces her to do whatever he says. Risette has no say in her life anymore. The worst part is that she will not leave his side."

_God damn it! Yosuke… I am going to kick your ass, you lying bastard!_

The reporter asked, "The idol goes to your school, right? How do the students feel about having the couple in the school?"

Yosuke continued with his interview, "They all hate Souji… Many just wanted a chance to see Risette, but they never get a chance to because she's apparently all his and no one else's."

"Thank you for your time," the reporter bowed.

Back at the present, the paparazzi continued, "We have come to believe that Souji is a terrible boyfriend for our Risette here and we have prime footage of one of his angry outbursts."

The screen cut to the outlook where Souji was yelling at the paparazzi to "Leave Rise alone or he'll make them leave her alone…" Apparently, at least one of the photographers actually had a video camera that Souji had failed to see and was now displaying it for everyone to see.

_Shit… At Mooroka would put it, I'm going to be the number 1 on the shit list when I get to school tomorrow._

He did not realize just how much of an effect that stupid entertainment report would have until the next couple of school days. When Souji walked to the Southern Shopping District on Wednesday, Rise was not waiting for him. Her grandmother told Souji that she had already left for school; that fact did not bother Souji that much… at first.

Souji at least wanted to see her after school, though. Souji could not find her within the school no matter where he looked. Instead of his 'girlfriend', all Souji had in school waiting for him… the renewed glares and gossiping from people who believed he was a bastard to the public and to Rise. The self-satisfying smirk that Yosuke had on his face when Souji walked into the room was disgusting. It made Souji want to punch his lights out, but only Souji's steely restraint kept him from doing so. Even teachers were being biased towards him… mainly Mooroka. He suffered through the teachers' reviews and practice exams, too. They were all against him.

"Look, there's that guy who treats Risette like she's his toy," some boy was muttering to another before class.

"He's why we can never talk to her or ask for her autograph," the other boy said.

Souji's annoyances continued all the way through Saturday; it did not help that he could not find Rise through that time either. Her grandma was no help at all either. It was a complete disaster, and as much as he wanted to blame the whole thing on that stupid entertainment report, he would not. About the report, there was only one person he could blame. That person pissed him off so much made Souji snap after he went to basketball club and passed on a trip to Aiya's after making an excuse of looking for Rise.

Souji was walking past the front gate of the school after basketball club on Thursday when he saw Yosuke standing around with a few other schoolmates. When Yosuke spotted Souji, the other boys left, leaving Yosuke alone with the silver-haired young man.

Souji tried to ignore Yosuke. He just wanted to try and let everything smooth over, but… Yosuke said as he passed, "Hey! Abuse your girlfriend lately?"

_Oh hell no…_

Souji stopped in his tracks and turned towards Yosuke. Souji replied, "Been a lying bastard lately?"

Yosuke smirked, "The people just need to know the truth, Souji."

"Fabricated lies are not the truth," Souji told Yosuke.

"Everything that has been said is open to people's interpretation," Yosuke's smirk did not disappear, "It's not my fault if they took my words the wrong way."

"You knew what was going to happen!" Souji exclaimed, "You did this just to get back at me and to make me look bad."

Yosuke's smirk disappeared and in its place was a face of rage. He sneered, "So what! I told you that you don't deserve Risette. If I have to help the reporters and paparazzi turn all of Inaba… all of Japan against you to get rid of you, I will"

Souji only shook his head, "You poor boy… Did your mother not hold you enough when you were little?" He raised his head and said to Yosuke, "I don't know why you think acting like is so beneficial. If you think it will help you in the long run with Rise-chan, then you are a dumbass."

Yosuke yelled, "What the hell do you know! You are just some kid that tricked Risette into going out with you! I'm proving what we all already know and because of this… Risette will come back to us!"

Souji sighed, "This stupid shit you are pulling is hurting Rise-chan as much as you are trying to hurt me. Only you would be this stupid, Yosuke."

"Don't call me stupid, dumbass!" Yosuke yelled, advancing on him.

Souji had had enough. Yosuke had pushed him too far for too long. If Yosuke came any closer…

_I dare you…_

Yosuke tried to close the distance to Souji to around six inches, apparently to get into his face. Souji replied by raising his right fist and planting it squarely in Yosuke's face. After Yosuke fell to the ground, Souji walked past, not even checking to see the damage inflicted upon the fluffy brown-haired jackass. Souji was going to look for Rise because that was more important than listening to that dumbass. Unfortunately, finding her was proving impossible.

The only enjoyable thing for Souji the rest of this school week was walking into 2-2 before class started on Friday and seeing a large bandage plastered across Yosuke's nose. It seemed that he was not the only one who thought seeing Yosuke's face smashed in was funny because the student next to Souji had a smirk on her face. That's why Souji spoke to Chie after school was over on Friday.

Chie turned her head to the left to speak with Souji after school, "I heard you beat up Yosuke yesterday."

Souji replied, "He had it coming."

"He probably did," Chie admitted.

"Yosuke's a jackass," Souji said, "He just wouldn't shut up."

"That sounds like Yosuke," Chie nodded, "Doesn't know when to keep his mouth shut."

"He paid for his big mouth," Souji said, "Hopefully he won't open it again."

"I guess if I ever feel like he's being too much of a pain, I can call on you now?" Chie asked.

_What am I, a hired merc…?_

"I guess, but you've been more than able to deal with him before," Souji smiled, remembering all the times Souji saw Chie beat up Yosuke. He wished Chie would smack around Yosuke again.

That little conversation was the only amusement Souji had through Saturday. When Souji got home from school after his classes on the last day of class before the weekend, it was raining and he was feeling drained. Rise was nowhere to be found and Souji did not want to deal with his family either, so his room was his place of solace. He kept the television off, just in case the reporters tried to slander his 'good' name more than they already had.

"Are you going out, Big bro?" Nanako asked when he came down the next morning.

"I guess, Little sis," Souji replied, "Are you going to be okay by yourself?"

Nanako nodded, "I'll be okay…"

"If you say so, I'll be back this evening," Souji said.

_I feel bad for leaving Nanako alone again, but… I should spend one more day looking for Rise._

Souji's previous searches for Rise around the city were completely fruitless. Why he was making one most likely futile trip around Inaba, Souji had no clue. Souji was not going to search for long… searching in asinine places like Junes would be pointless. With school closed, and places like the outlook and Okina City too far to be useful searches early in the morning… Souji decided to head to the Shopping District and Marukyu.

_Rise… I can only help you if you're here._

Souji saw no paparazzi or useless ex-friends around the Southern Shopping District when he arrived. Souji took a deep breath before he entered the quaint-looking tofu shop. When he entered he heard a voice he recognized…

"We're not open yet, please leave!" Souji saw a girl in red ponytails wearing a orange sleeveless blouse and white Capri pants, but holding her work clothes for working in the tofu shop standing behind the wooden counter.

Souji sighed, "Rise-chan…"

_I found her…_

Rise seemed startled when she heard Souji's voice, and she dropped the clothes she was about to change into. When Rise turned around, Souji looked confused for a good reason. She had glasses with slender pink frames on.

"Souji-kun…?" Rise walked around the counter and right to the silver-haired young man, "What are you doing here?"

"I've been looking for you," Souji explained, "You haven't been to school, have you?"

Rise lowered her head as she answered, "I was trying to stay away from you. I told you that the paparazzi would try and make use of what you said to that reporter."

"And I told you that it does not matter to me," Souji replied, lying through his teeth.

"Souji-kun," Rise said, "You don't have to lie for me."

"It's okay," Souji said. He told Rise with his right arm outstretched, "Let's just ignore those fools."

Rise gave a small smile, "I think I want to skip work today."

_Usually… this turns out for the worse._

Rise went back around the counter to fold up the clothes she dropped. As soon as she put away the clothes, she hurried towards Souji. She grabbed Souji's right hand and together they walked through the door of Marukyu.

Souji looked at Rise as she gently led him towards the right and the bus stop. He asked, "Where are we going today?"

"I want to go shopping with you in Okina City," Rise answered, "I never found a new swimsuit for this summer."

_Oh god… more shopping. I'm going to be so bored._

Rise seemed to sense Souji's apprehension, so Rise said, "I was planning on asking your opinion on my choices, Souji-kun."

_This is her peace offering?_

Souji had to ask as they sat down on the bus's back seats, "Do you normally wear glasses?" Souji gestured towards Rise's pink frames.

Rise smiled, "Do you like them? They are my reading glasses, but I'm wearing them because I thought they might draw people's eyes away from the fact that I'm not wearing makeup today."

"I had no idea you wore reading glasses," Souji admitted.

Rise said, "If you don't like them, I can take them off…"

"No… you don't have to…," Souji shook his head, "You look cute."

Rise smiled mischievously as she asked, "Do you have a glasses fetish, Souji-kun?"

Souji answered, "No… I don't."

"Then, should I have put on makeup?" Rise asked.

"It's completely unnecessary," Souji said.

"Okay, if you say so," Rise didn't sound completely convinced.

After a minute of riding the bus in silence, Souji said to Rise, "They've been reviewing for exams in my classes; I am sure they have been doing the same in yours."

Rise sighed, "I told you that I didn't want to cause you anymore trouble. Exams aren't worth causing pain for the person who is trying to make my life better.

There was an uneasy silence for the rest of the trip, but Rise never let go of Souji's hand till they had to separate to get off the bus.

Rise said to Souji that she was only going to look for a swimsuit. Of course, it was a lie that Souji should have seen coming. There were only three stores that they had not visited, and one they were planning to visit later. She was searching for new summer dresses, skirts, and blouses. It drove Souji insane. Souji spent his time sitting in the chair so his legs would still work when Rise was finished. Watching Rise try on those dresses was not very exciting. He could really care less about seeing her try on all of these clotehs.

_I guess I should be excited about Rise… her basically modeling for me in swimsuits, but I don't know if I will even be alive by the time she's far enough along shopping for that._

Unlike the last time the two were together in Okina City, Souji was carrying a couple of bags of clothes Rise bought. As the two were walking to one last store, Souji guessed it was towards a shop were she would be trying on the supposed swimsuits, she suddenly stopped in front of a signboard.

She looked at Souji and said, "I'm surprised no one recognized me today."

Souji shrugged, "Maybe it was the glasses?"

Rise smiled and grabbed Souji's hand. She looked up and seemed slightly surprised. When Souji asked about her reaction, she responded, "It's another model that my agency was promoting… Kanami. She's a little younger than me."

"Are you happy for her, or…?" Souji asked.

Rise shrugged, "I guess so… it's weird. That's how I got burned out, and now that someone else is successful…"

_Does she regret her decision to quit?_

"Rise-chan…," Souji did something he knew Rise was going to do in a second anyways. He squeezed her hand. It brought a smile to Rise's face.

They entered the last store and started browsing around the shop. Thankfully for Souji, Rise did not spend too much time idly looking around before moving towards the back left of the store.

"Here we go," Rise said, grabbing Souji's hand and pulling him with her.

The two ended up in front of a rack of swimsuits of all colors. Rise wasted no time at all looking through the various suits, holding them up. Rise soon had a white, red and yellow, and a pink suit in her hands.

"I'm going to try them on, okay, Souji-kun?" Rise smiled as she held up the two-piece suits in her hands.

"Okay, sure…," Souji nodded.

Before Rise could reach the dressing room, another boy and girl entered the store. They were holding hands and when the boy saw of the back of Rise's head, the boy turned to his girlfriend. He said to her, "Look… its Risette."

"Risette, huh?" the girl remarked, "What she's doing here? Doesn't she shop at fancier places?"

_Why does it matter where she shops?_

"She's washed up, you know?" the boy said to the girl, "That's why she left show business."

"What do you mean?" the girl asked.

The boy explained, "There's a new model that's a lot better than Rise ever was."

"A new model?" the girl looked at him askance.

"Her name is Kanamin, and she's cuter… she's this girl who you would want to protect. She's no slut or sellout like Risette."

The boy's girlfriend did not seem very happy to hear about the new model. She probably believed that he was spending more time staring at the model than with her. One slap later, the girlfriend left the store.

"Hey!" the boy looked back at the retreating girl and followed her out.

_That jerk…_

He felt another person brush by him. Rise had run past him in a flustered state. Those brazen and spiteful words struck a nerve with her and she had fled both the store… and was she fleeing Okina as well?

Souji had to apologize to the shopkeeper for the dropped swimsuits and then chase after Rise with her bags in his hands. Souji was not really sure where she had gone, but after leaving the store… he was sure she had left Okina City. That was why he boarded the bus and went straight back to the Shopping District.

_If I was Rise… where would I have gone? I just don't think she would have gone back to Marukyu. I don't think she went somewhere too far away. I bet she's hiding from me again. Where did she go?_

Souji started walking from the Shopping District. He had a bit of walk ahead of where he was going to look for Rise. Souji was headed for Samegawa and its Floodplains. He was still carrying Rise's bags when he heard the flowing Samegawa River and saw the girl he was looking for sitting on the covered table and benches. A man was walking away from Rise that Souji somewhat recognized.

When Souji walked past a couple of trees and up to the benches, Rise had her head down and it looked like the last thing she was going to do was smile. Souji took a seat next to her. She did not take his hand or anything of the sort.

"Rise-chan," Souji said softly.

"Souji-kun, you shouldn't have come," Rise said.

"Why not?" Souji asked.

Rise explained, "That was my ex-manager, Inoue-san. Remember him?"

_Yeah, the guy you yelled at. But… that didn't answer my question._

"He explained he's managing Kanamin now," Rise shook her head; "She's even been given that role in the movie they were going to cast me in."

"Are you jealous of her success?" Souji asked.

Rise looked straight into Souji's eyes, "I know I shouldn't care… but when he says that she'll be better than I will ever be. When the fans say it too…"

"Rise-chan…," Souji said softly.

"I just can't keep up this charade anymore, Souji-kun," Rise muttered.

_Which part…_?

"I can't pretend to be your girlfriend anymore," Rise sighed, "It's too painful if every time we try to do something we get hurt by paparazzi or jealous people…"

_That's not the real reason, is it?_

"You're contemplating returning to being an idol, aren't you?" Souji asked.

Rise put her head down, "I'm sorry, Souji-kun."

She brushed her hand lightly over Souji's before she stood up and walked away. Souji was not going to chase after her this time. He was only going to say one thing to her as she left.

"Don't forget your purchases," Souji said.

Rise stopped and turned around so she could grab the clothes at Souji's feet. As much as she wanted to smile for him, she could not. As she walked away from the benches, Souji could not find the energy to stand up. It was as if Rise stole it all away from him.

_If she leaves… is my life going to finally return to one where I can be free from ridicule? Will it be one of boredom and monotony? I hope she finds what she's looking for… happiness and satisfaction._

"Take care… Rise-chan."

* * *

Is this the end? You'll have to read and find out. Auf Wiedersehen all.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Sadly, I do not own Persona…

There are no foggy murders here, no Shadows, no social links, and no Personas. This is about the people. At least… as far as I know. Some of the personalities are different because of the fact that there are no social links… i.e. Nanako… other personalities are different because I feel like it.

If you have questions about why my writing is like it is, especially the order of names… read my reasoning in the chapter descriptions of Samurai and Ninjas.

_Thoughts _

_

* * *

_

Souji's walk home was one of trepidation and a little depressing. The whole experience of having Rise around… it changed the way his time in Inaba felt. It was painful at times, strenuous at times, and very difficult as well; he still enjoyed his time helping Rise try and find herself. Souji did not think he would ever have talked to Nanako casually if it was not for her personally asking to meet his family. Now, she was leaving… and it looked like it was harder than it thought for her. He should have expected it... her going back to modeling, acting, and being an idol.

Opening the door to his temporary home, Souji did not know what he was going to say to his cousin, his Little sis. What could he say to the person he promised to bring Rise Kujikawa back to visit?

"Welcome home, Big bro!" Nanako greeted.

"Hey, Little sis…," Souji was a little less enthusiastic with his own greeting.

Nanako seemed to sense his listless nature and asked, "What's wrong?"

_There has to be an announcement coming… It'll come soon if she decides to speak out tonight._

"Are you sad?" Nanako asked innocently.

Souji smiled, or at least tried to, "I don't think I'm sad… it's just that something happened that is kind of depressing."

"Hmm…," Nanako was not sure what to say to her cousin, but she looked like wanted him to sit down across from her.

As Souji sat across from Nanako, he asked her, "Is your dad coming home tonight?"

"He said he was going to be late again," Nanako said. Souji knew that under that face was one of sadness and annoyance. She was wondering why her father was not going to be there for her daughter.

_Is his work is so important that he can never spend time with her? It's like I am a blessing for him because he now has someone to watch over Nanako while he's gone, no matter how well she can take care of herself._

"Hey, Little sis... I think the next time you buy groceries, I'll make dinner," Souji said.

A smile broke on Nanako's face, "Really? Yay!"

His subtle gesture to cheer up Nanako slightly seemed to have worked and Souji now had something to do again… something to look forward to.

The two living in the Dojima family were eating what Souji hoped was one of the last processed dinners for a while when Nanako turned on the news. The reporters talked about the various sports teams, all of which in their region sucked. They talked about the weather and about the crime.

_There is surprisingly a small amount of crime considering Nanako's dad never spends time in this house. He's running away from his own daughter._

When the entertainment portion of the news came on, Souji's ears perked up and his head focused towards the screen. The reporter that focused completely on the entertainment portion of the news; it was in fact, the same reporter that harassed them at the outlook, was standing outside of Marukyu Tofu.

Nanako looked at Souji, "Isn't that where Rise-chan lives?"

Souji nodded, "It looks like she has something to say to the reporters."

The reporter had entered Marukyu Tofu while a cameraman followed. He was talking as he walked, "Apparently, Rise Kujikawa, has called us for an interview. This comes as a great shock after the reaction that her boyfriend, Souji Seta, had the last time we attempted to interview her. Our station was the only one she invited and we are giving you the exclusive story."

Rise was standing behind the counter of her tofu store, and the cameras immediately focused on her as she came into view. Souji was amazed… she looked nothing like she did only a few hours ago when she left Souji's side. Her hair was down and her makeup was applied in a fashion that reminded Souji of one of the sitcoms she was in. Rise's clothes… she was wearing one of those summer dresses she had picked out earlier today. It was a yellow and orange ensemble. Souji also saw her wearing a thin bracelet that she bought that afternoon as well.

_Was she planning to do this the whole time? Is this the real reason she asked me to go shopping together? Was that little thing with that boy nothing to her? She had already decided to leave._

Souji put his hand to forehead, which Nanako noticed and she asked him, "Big bro…? Are you okay?"

"Yeah… It's nothing," Souji replied.

"Is it about Rise-chan?" Nanako asked.

Souji shook his head. He just focused his attention on the TV screen to see how she would announce her return to being an idol.

The reporter had set up an extra microphone set for Rise to use; it was placed on the counter of the tofu shop. The reporter and two cameramen looked very anxious to see what Rise had to say, but Souji already knew.

The reporter finally got the courage to start the interview, only because Rise did not speak right away, "Kujikawa-san, why did you call this interview? You have been very reticent about allowing yourself in the limelight since you decided on a hiatus."

Souji could tell by the serious face Rise was showing that though she was not perky, she was not going to be lethargic like the last time she held an interview. Rise took a deep breath before saying, "I have an announcement for everyone. I would like to announce the end of my hiatus and my return to show business."

Nanako looked away from the TV and to Souji, "Rise-chan is going back?"

"Looks like it," Souji said.

The cameras flashed repeatedly and the video cameras focused and zoomed in on Rise's face as the reporter asked, "This is quite a different view from your previous statements. What caused you to suddenly change your mind?"

"The reasoning is my own," Rise responded succinctly.

"Okay…," the reporter had to regain his focus after her abrupt comment. He followed up that question with, "What did your boyfriend have to say about this?"

"My boyfriend?" Rise looked straight into the reporter's eyes.

"Yes… what does your boyfriend, Souji Seta, think about this decision?" he asked. He continued, "Considering the actions he has taken before and the eyewitness accounts from others, we can assume that he did not take this news well, am I correct?"

"What are they talking about, Big bro?" Nanako looked at Souji.

"It's nothing to worry about," Souji said.

_Stupid paparazzi… She'll probably tell them the truth about the whole thing. It doesn't matter._

"First of all, I want you to know that Souji Seta is the sweetest, kindest person you could ever meet, and that meeting him has changed my life. The things said about him were completely false and you were completely misled by people who do not understand him." Rise started.

"Well… thank you for clearing that up with us, Kujikawa-san," the reporter said.

"I'm not done!" Rise cut in, "The things you said about him… they hurt him… and he doesn't even show it. Even more so, they hurt me."

_What are you doing, Rise-chan?_

"We are sorry if we hurt you, but you have to believe that we were only trying to report the truth," the reporter apologized.

"Rise-chan must really like you, Big bro," Nanako said to Souji.

"I guess so…," Souji shrugged.

Souji's head turned when Rise started speaking again, "I want you to know that Souji Seta was not my real boyfriend while I was on hiatus."

The news that the silver-haired young man was not Rise's real boyfriend certainly surprised the reporter and cameramen.

Nanako looked at Souji with a surprised look on her face as well. Souji just nodded in agreement with the statement.

_It had to come out eventually._

"Then… why the charade…?" the reporter started to say.

"Souji-kun… he was somebody who would never take advantage of me; he helped me look for my true self," Rise explained, "I needed the solitude and for someone to listen to me. He was the one person I trusted."

_Great… Now that everyone knows, can we get on with it all?_

Souji was still thinking when Nanako brought him out of his reverie, "You weren't going out with Rise-chan?"

Souji shook his head, "No… we were just pretending to."

"You told me that you were," Nanako pouted.

"Sorry, Little sis…," Souji shook his head.

Souji's head turned when the final words were spoken.

Rise's words rang through Souji's ears, "Souji-kun has allowed me to find myself again and it was difficult to decide to leave Inaba again. I want him to know… if he's listening, thank you… and… and…. I can't say it."

Rise had lost her composure and was not able to finish her final statement. The cameras flashed as she suddenly left the room and the view of the reporter. He did not even have time to ask anymore probing questions before she disappeared.

_Rise-chan… what were you trying to say? You weren't trying to say what I thought you were going to say, were you? Don't do this now…_

Souji excused himself from Nanako's company before she could ask anymore questions about his tenuous relationship with Rise. He did not want to watch the entertainment newscasters' analysis of the interview, either. All Souji wanted to do was to read before going to sleep…

Reading proved fruitless for Souji; he got absolutely nowhere in his novel. When he tried to sleep, he shifted around in his futon for hours. The little sleep he did get was filled with nightmares. Dreams did not come easily for Souji that night.

_Why did my nightmare involve Rise leaving in such an angry fashion? She doesn't hate me…_

Souji's trip to school the next day… he tried to take an inconspicuous route to school. Souji had a feeling that he would get a lot of interesting looks during the next couple of hours at Yasogami. His secret life was exposed by Rise last night; the fact that they were not really going out. It was necessary for everyone to know, but it was still damaging to him.

Souji knew that he was going to get a lot of weird looks, but he did not expect the disgusted looks. They were looks of disgust from people who thought that Souji had led them on by pretending to go out with Rise. Souji had no response to their leers, to their gossiping.

"There's that guy," a second-year girl smirked, "He thought he was going out with Rise Kujikawa."

"I almost feel sorry for him," another girl, who Souji recognized as one of his classmates said, "He must have felt so foolish when she left."

Souji would have felt foolish if he thought that people would treat him better after Rise left. He had lost faith in the people of Inaba, at least those in Yasogami High. He found one place of solace… and two real friends. He found refuge in basketball club this week, playing pickup games with Kou and then later on with Daisuke. They said nothing about Rise leaving or his faux-relationship with her. Souji could just forget about what happened.

It was on Thursday after basketball practice when he once again confronted by Yosuke. The bandages on his face were removed by Sunday. The reason why he Yosuke had bandages on his face was Souji pounding on him for giving an interview with false information. There was no telling smirk on Yosuke's face this time. He actually looked a little sad as Souji rested his back near the gates.

Yosuke walked up to Souji and said, "Man, I'm sorry… I shouldn't have done all of that. I didn't know that you and Rise were… I still don't really know what you two were doing."

Souji sighed, "It doesn't matter. She came to me because she thought I was reliable and that I would be able to help her find herself."

"You don't seem very reliable, man," Yosuke muttered, "But… I can see why she might trust you. You are usually… level-headed."

"Usually?" Souji shook his head.

Yosuke patted Souji on the shoulder and they walking for a ways.

_At least we're not fighting._

As the two headed towards Junes, Yosuke smiled, "I heard Kanamin is coming to Inaba for filming a movie. No one knows where and when in Inaba, though."

_Great, another god damn idol…_

"I can't deal with another idol," Souji said.

"I don't think this one is on hiatus, Souji. You better watch yourself," Yosuke smirked.

The two ended up eating at Junes and they actually improved their friendship a little.

The rest of the week went a little better with Yosuke telling people to cool down. But, school was still unbearable.

Sunday was a day that Souji was more than happy to see come. He had a little breakfast with Nanako by himself; Dojima was not home when he came down. Even though he did not have school, Souji had no idea what to do. The past couple of weeks, Souji would have gone to Marukyu Tofu and done something with Rise. Now, he was completely unsure of what to do. That was Souji started wandering around till he headed towards where he last met with Rise Kujikawa before she left.

He could not just hear the Samegawa River flowing past, he could feel it… even if he was nowhere by it. The closer Souji walked towards the covered benches, the more props and people he encountered. Yosuke said there was an idol filming a movie, the same idol that was becoming more popular than Rise; the idol was here right now, Souji had ascertained.

"Okay, that's a wrap!" Souji heard a loud male voice call out, "Take a break! I'll see you after lunch!"

_I should leave them alone._

Souji started walking away. It was not his business, after all. He got about ten steps from the site when a male voice called out for him.

"Souji Seta, right?" a male voice that Souji recognized called out.

Souji turned around and saw the former manager of Rise Kujikawa standing before him, Inoue. He looked extremely busy and a bit flustered. If he was the new manager of Kanami, she was working him hard.

"It's a surprise to see you here," Inoue said, "I guess you are not marrying Rise-san, right?"

Souji nodded, "I guess not."

"I hope you don't feel too bad about everything that's happened," Inoue said.

"No… it's okay," Souji shook his head.

A higher-pitched female voice rang out, "Inoue-san, who are you talking to?"

"An acquaintance of Rise-san, Kanami-san," Inoue turned his head and called out.

"Let me talk to him, Inoue-san," Kanami said.

Inoue nodded and backed away. From behind came a girl with long brown hair wearing a short white skirt and a skinny white shirt. She seemed to recognize Souji and walked up to him.

"You're Souji Seta, right?" Kanami asked.

Souji nodded, "Kanamin…"

"I'm excited to meet the guy who 'supposedly' dated Risette," Kanami responded with a bubbly smile.

"She doesn't like to be called that," Souji told her.

"Really?" Kanami looked a little confused, "She used to love it."

"I learned a lot about her," Souji said.

"Anyways, you sure looked like a real couple from what little I saw," Kanami smiled, "I think she really liked it when you stuck up for her. I would fall for you, if I was her."

Souji shook his head, "She just wanted it to look real…"

"To look real, or be real?" Kanami asked.

"Look real…," Souji answered.

"Well… if you really believe that," Kanami's smile brightened, "I like bad boys…"

Souji closed his eyes. He did not want to hear another word. If she was getting started with this, he could not handle it…

_I need to leave…_

"I'll get back to you, Kanami-chan," Souji said, with no intention of ever speaking to her seriously.

Souji shook his head. As soon as he could get rid of her, Souji was going to head home and find someone sane.

_I'm missing Rise already…_

* * *

Thank you guys for your support… Auf Wiedersehen…


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Sadly, I do not own Persona…

There are no foggy murders here, no Shadows, no social links, and no Personas. This is about the people. At least… as far as I know. Some of the personalities are different because of the fact that there are no social links… i.e. Nanako… other personalities are different because I feel like it.

If you have questions about why my writing is like it is, especially the order of names… read my reasoning in the chapter descriptions of Samurai and Ninjas.

One thing for today's chapter- to those who reviewed: You guys are amazing, especially those that defending me against that "lovely" review I received at one point. If you were not able to defend me because you reviewed my story before it happened, you're still awesome. Btw: The guy who gave that one review is the exception, he's been blocked. I hope you continue to be amazing.

_Thoughts _

_

* * *

_

It was a surprisingly chilly evening and Souji was spending another lonely night talking with Nanako. Souji had helped Nanako with the laundry and he was currently trying out his magic tricks for his cousin. Unfortunately, she saw right through his futile attempts of magic. The two of them bonded a great deal over this period of time. Souji real felt like he had a little sister now. Nanako shared a lot with Souji and he did the same with her… Souji just wished that he could fulfill his promises to her.

Time had passed surprisingly quickly for Souji since Rise Kujikawa's departure from Inaba, especially since he sheltered himself in the basketball club and made up with Yosuke. If Souji was not as even-tempered as he was, Yosuke would probably still be bandaged, but Souji was rather forgiving. Except for a few different shades, Souji's life was returning to the same routine that he had been living through before his short time with Rise. He would spend his free time with Yosuke and Chie, watching Chie beat the shit out of Yosuke for asinine reasons. His Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays had Souji playing basketball with Kou and then joining Daisuke for some fattening food at Aiya's. Souji would even occasionally visit the drama club to practice his eloquence. He did not have to deal with Yumi though. Her father was in the hospital and she despised him for some reason. Souji only visited Yumi at the hospital once before he got sick of her.

The glares lessened after a time, and the teachers stopped being asses towards him soon enough. It allowed Souji to prepare and take his exams in peace and quiet. He even finished in the top of his grade for the midterms. It gave Souji a small feeling of joy in his otherwise dull life.

Thankfully, Kanami had left a week after she came. She had made slight advances on Souji and her agent did nothing to stop her. Only when Souji told Yosuke and six other Kanamin fans where the filming was taking place did she stop chasing after Souji… at least for the time being.

All of that was nice, but even with this repaired relationship with Inaba's society, Souji still felt a little lonely. Souji was just was not sure what to do with himself at times, especially when he did not feel like hanging out with Chie or Yosuke, or when there was no basketball club. Souji just needed something to do during those days, but… it was as if he became physically and emotionally drained because of the idleness.

It was that chilly night in July when the same iconic commercial that brought Rise Kujikawa to Souji's attention for the very first time came on the air again.

Souji saw Rise in the same striped bikini as the water poured over her head. He watched her take another drink from that disgusting concoction.

_I wonder what they're paying her to drink that shit, hmm… I hope she is at least trying to stand up for herself now… wherever she is…_

"I'm tired of diets! And enough with going to the gym! Good thing there is something easy enough that I can handle," Rise announced.

A voice advertised, "Quelorie Magic is made for those for those worried about their calorie intake and body fat. It'll slim you down in no time!"

Nanako looked at Souji and asked, "Big bro… do you think we'll ever see Rise-chan again?"

Souji shrugged, "I don't know… she's gone back to work, so…"

"Do you want to see Rise-chan again, Big bro?" Nanako asked, "You look like you want to."

_Do I… Do I really look like I want to see Rise again? She was my friend, but… I can deal with not seeing her again. She has probably already pushed the memory of our friendship to the back of his mind._

Souji did not really want to answer right now, and he was saved from answering by having Rise's shining and pristine face appear on TV. She was wearing a yellow and orange dress that sparkled in the summertime sun. A park was in the background with beautiful oak trees and perfectly trimmed fresh green grass. At least… they had shot it sometime during the day. The one defining factor from the usual Rise Kujikawa that Souji and even most of the public usually saw… was that her dark red hair was down and around her shoulders.

_She looks nice, no complaints._

Rise had a huge smile on her face as she waved to the camera and cocked her head slightly to the left. She said gleefully, "Hey, hey everyone! I hope you all know that my birthday is coming up soon! I hope all of you are my fans and excited for me! If you want to send me a card for my special day, I will personally read every single one of them and send them back with an autograph!" The smile on Rise's face was trying to get wider, every one of her white teeth were showing.

_It looks fallacious_ _to me. She's not going to read all of them._

Souji knew he was right about the autograph part being false, at least. Rise said, "Thank you for being the best fans in the world, you guys!"

Underneath Rise's white smile and her gratitude, the words in very small fine print said, "All autographs will be produced in a factory-based manner, and will not be hand-written. However, we still appreciate the sentiment."

Souji nodded to himself, noticing the fine print, "Idiots…"

Nanako asked, "Should we send a card, Big bro?"

Souji sighed, "I don't know… She won't read any of the cards, Little Sis." A headache was starting to form.

"Really?" Nanako had not noticed the writing at the bottom.

"She does not have the time to reply to all of her fans or write all of those autographs," Souji answered.

"Maybe, you should find a special gift for her," Nanako smiled, "I think you would like to do that…"

_Nanako! What the hell?_

"Huh? What makes you think that?" Souji almost stuttered.

"You seem a little lonely, Big bro…," Nanako said. He added, "You weren't lonely when Rise-chan was here."

"Little sis…," Souji muttered.

Souji was being put into too many uncomfortable situations by a little kid and he had to just keep his mouth shut. That's why he just refused to speak and just keep everything to himself. Still, he was not sure what he was going to do tomorrow. He was probably going to waste some time again doing something pointless. Souji almost wished that he could go on a 'real' vacation somewhere, just to take his mind off of everything.

It was for that reason Souji could not really sleep that night. He really wanted to blame his cousin, but… he could not do that. Souji could not blame Rise for his lack of sleep, so he blamed himself.

When Souji came down from his room the next morning, Nanako was already up and making eggs for him. That was definitely a plus for the silver-haired boy… a younger cousin who could make breakfast.

As Souji was about to head out the door, Nanako called out to him, "Big bro! Are you headed out?"

"Yeah…," Souji answered.

"Let's go shopping," Nanako suggested.

"Why? For what?" Souji did not like where this was conversation was going.

"For Rise-chan!" Nanako smiled.

_I knew it._

Souji sighed… This is not really what he was planning to do today.

"Let me go get some more of my money," Souji told Nanako. He originally had enough money for… a meal at Junes or Aiya's, not some sort of shopping spree.

Nanako started cleaning the table of the dirty dishes while Souji went upstairs. He walked over to his desk and pulled open one of his drawers. He took out some of the money he had saved from doing some part-time jobs in the evening.

_Thank god… I can't believe Nanako is making me do this. Who knew she was such an evil girl? I don't even lik…_ Souji didn't finish that thought-sentence.

"Big bro!" Nanako must have finished cleaning the dishes because Souji was lingering around, thinking.

Souji sighed again before he put the bills in his wallet and closed the drawer in his desk. Heading down his desk, he saw an expectant Nanako waiting to go shopping with him… for Rise's birthday! He popped his collar before heading out the door, reluctantly, with Nanako.

_How the hell did I get dragged into this?_

As the two walked towards to the bus station in the Shopping District, Souji was still wondering what the hell he had gotten into and what he was going to do. He felt a little odd when he passed Marukyu Tofu, not really able to place the name of his emotions. The bus ride to Okina City was a silent endeavor as well, with Souji not really feeling like saying anything.

Reaching Okina City and its voluminous amounts of shopping, Souji was reminded of the last time he spent time of Rise. He never really got to spend the whole day with her, thanks to that couple's comments. After a week of thinking about it, he had concluded that she was going to leave his side that day no matter what. It just probably would not have been such a dramatic exit if it was not for that stupid guy who could not keep his mouth shut.

The thing was… where the hell was he supposed to find a gift for Rise Kujikawa? He was a guy!

_Where should we go? I'm not going into a clothing store… that'd be weird. I have no idea where we should start…_

"Nanako?" Souji looked at his cousin, she was a little girl… but still.

Nanako started pulling him towards a store he recognized; it was one of the stores that Rise had dragged him into before. It was called "Croco Fur" and it had all sorts of shit that Souji would never think of buying for any girl… besides, he could not afford any of it.

"Little sis," Souji asked his cousin, "Why here?"

"It's colorful and pretty," Nanako said.

Souji shook his head and muttered, "You have to be kidding me." He faced his cousin and said, "You know we can't afford anything in here, so if you want to look around… that's all we'll be doing… looking."

That's basically what happened, with Nanako looking around and Souji standing there with a hand on his hip. It was just like before…

_I swear… if you give Nanako about seven years and dye her hair… shit, we'd have another Rise. She'd be dragging suckers into stores all the time. God help their poor souls. _

Of course, the saleslady ignored the little girl browsing the goods and went straight to Souji's side. The saleslady was young and cute with a mischievous smile, could not be older than twenty. Her dress suit was a nasty purple color, however, but that did not stop her from addressing him, "How can I help you today? Looking for something for your girlfriend?"

Souji shook his head, "My cousin brought me here and she's looking around."

The saleslady looked around and finally noticed the little girl that was browsing through the clothes and accessories. Her mischievous smile widened at the sight of Nanako and said, "Your cousin is adorable. You must be really close to her to let her bring you here."

"I guess so," Souji responded.

"Well… if you're not doing anything later," the saleslady winked at Souji.

_Oh come on!_

"Big bro!" Nanako saved Souji from answering, "I found something…"

As Souji walked over to where Nanako was looking, the saleslady smirked, "Big bro, hmm?"

Nanako was looking at the glass case which held the small amount of jewelry and fancy accessories that Souji knew were out of their price range. The fact that Nanako found something that might suit Rise's fancy made his head hurt. Of course Rise would be expensive.

"What did you find?" Souji asked.

Nanako pointed down through the glass case at a piece of jewelry. Sadly, Souji saw the price tag before the jewelry and died on the spot.

"Little sis…," Souji muttered, "I can't afford that. I'm not rich or anything."

"But… it's for Rise-chan," Nanako told Souji.

"I know what you want me to do, but… I don't have that kind of money," Souji told Nanako.

The saleslady came up behind Souji, "Did you say Rise? As in Rise Kujikawa?"

Nanako turned around and nodded, "We're looking for something for Rise-chan's birthday."

The woman of twenty's dark brown eyes widened as she realized who she had been talking to. "You're Souji Seta, aren't you? You're Rise's alleged boyfriend, right?" She now believed that her chances of picking up this guy were zero to none.

_That will follow me until the day I die, I know it. It can't help with Little sis stirring everything up._

"No, I'm not her boyfriend," Souji shook his head, denying what was obvious for the thousandth time, "It was all over the news."

The saleslady, despite everything she heard including Souji's word, didn't really seem to believe him. Her heart dropped a bit, but she looked down to see what Souji and his cousin was looking at.

"That locket…," the saleslady whispered.

Souji closed his eyes in frustration. He did not want to look at the heart-shaped piece of jewelry any longer. How much gold was actually in the locket, Souji did not know, but it was probably too much for anyone without a shitload of money to afford. At least for a high school student… Why Nanako picked this piece all of a sudden…

_I guess… it would look good on her, but… aggh. I would have to sell my soul to afford the damn thing. Why did Nanako bring me here? I should just send her one of those cards instead of wasting anymore time here being hit on._

The saleslady came right up to his left side and said to Souji, "If you're looking at that, you must really like her… no matter what you say about not being her boyfriend."

_What's with people assuming things?_

Souji opened his eyes and looked at Nanako, "We'll come back, okay?"

Nanako looked a little confused. "Why?" she asked.

Souji placed his hand on Nanako's shoulder, "I'll explain later."

Souji ended up walking out of "Croco Fur" with Nanako, but only after they took one last momentary glance at the gold-laden pendant. The two browsed through a few more shops, but neither Nanako nor Souji found nothing that he thought was worthy for Rise.

_Maybe I really should just send a card…_

The two went back by way of the bus, but Souji found himself a little down. He thought that it was probably because Nanako was so excited about trying to find something for Rise and that their trip was an epic failure. The one thing that Nanako was really excited about, Souji could not buy.

_I'm sorry… I probably should have gotten a better job, like work part-time at a hospital. Though… I probably would been molested by some older woman._

Souji spent another evening talking with Nanako because Dojima was at work again. The talk was a bit less cheerful and active than usual. The reason for that was obvious.

The silver-haired boy again found his solace in reading, but this time it was reading about a man who had no confidence in himself. He struggled and struggled in life until he thought it would be all over. When the man was about to give up and end his life, he finally found his way through love. Souji had to admit it was cheesy, but it was something to calm him down after another rough day.

_Damn it… I think Little sis really wanted me to get a nice gift for Rise. Not like I know how I would even get it to her. If I shipped it in a card, her agency people would probably keep it for themselves._

Souji did not really have an agenda for today either when he woke up the next morning. He just trudged off down the Samegawa Floodplains after eating toast that was made by a somewhat-less than cheerful Nanako. His purpose for heading down the floodplains was unknown, besides maybe getting some Vitamin K and some fresh air. What he did not expect was to run into Yukiko Amagi in the floodplains.

The daughter of the manager of the Amagi Inn seemed excited to see him near the covered table and benches, even if it was by chance. Her black blouse and long white skirt was a change from the dominant amount of red that she usually wore. Her long black hair held back by a by a red headband was brushed at least a hundred times and she waved at the sight of him.

"Souji-kun," Yukiko smiled, "It's nice to see you."

While Souji was "going out" with Rise, Yukiko did not act very friendly towards Souji. She was normally shy, but she made these subtle remarks that gave Souji the idea she liked him. She also made attempts to prove her affection, like cooking for him… her cooking was terrible.

"Yukiko-san," Souji decided to be respectful of the girl who would be the next manager of the Amagi Inn, "Good morning…" He could have added the –chan suffix at the end, but she was not younger, but... it was not the same.

Yukiko looked a little disheartened, but she composed herself with a smile and said, "How are you?"

"I'm doing alright," Souji responded.

The two started walking in the direction of the Southern Shopping District. Yukiko had requested him to follow, and Souji had nothing better to do. He just hoped there were no detrimental consequences afterwards.

They were idly wandering around the Southern Shopping District when Yukiko asked, "Aren't you glad that whole mess is over?"

"What do you mean?" Souji responed.

"That whole business with Rise, I mean" Yukiko explained. She continued as they stopped around the bus station, "You were never really going out with her. It was just some sham that she concocted."

"Right… sure…," Souji answered idly.

_That's harsh._ _She's probably going to start harping on Rise unless I change the subject._

That's exactly what Souji tried to do, "Is the inn still really busy?"

Yukiko shook her head, "Not during the hottest part of the summer… I just don't think they like coming to Inaba when they could go to somewhere more… interesting."

"That makes sense," Souji said, "They probably want to go to a beach… somewhere where they can relax in a swimsuit."

Yukiko frowned, but said somewhat to herself and somewhat to Souji, "I should invite Chie to our inn; she hasn't been there in a long time. You should come." She added idly, "I guess I'd invite Yosuke too."

_Probably so I wouldn't be the only male, and to mellow out Chie._

"I'll think about it," Souji told his classmate.

Yukiko's smile widened. She suddenly said to him, "I made a special lunch today… do you want to try some?"

_I don't want to die…_

_

* * *

_

I know… it is not my best work, but… I wanted to get something to you. I hope you enjoy. Auf Wiedersehen._.._


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

Sadly, I do not own Persona…

There are no foggy murders here, no Shadows, no social links, and no Personas. This is about the people. At least… as far as I know. Some of the personalities are different because of the fact that there are no social links… i.e. Nanako… other personalities are different because I feel like it.

If you have questions about why my writing is like it is, especially the order of names… read my reasoning in the chapter descriptions of Samurai and Ninjas.

_Thoughts _

_

* * *

_

Souji all but needed a stomach pump to dislodge every last piece of the meal that Yukiko had made for him. The omelet was downright disgusting and he was not even sure it was completely cooked.

_Three months of poisoning and her cooking has not improved at all._

Souji was not exactly what he had even agreed to outside of being poisoned, but apparently Yukiko had promised to call up Chie, who would call Yosuke; the main point was that he was invited to her inn. Souji was a little perturbed by being invited against his will, but… who knows… it might be fun to spend a night at the Amagi Inn.

_There are hot springs at this inn, right? I doubt they're mixed though. Chie would have a fit, especially if Yosuke comes._

The only thing that Souji requested was that if he was going to be lodged in the Amagi Inn for a day was that they let Nanako come along with him. Souji wanted an ally there, and he felt like she belonged there.

_As soon as I asked for Nanako to come, Yukiko agreed straight away. She was that excited to have me to come._

He did have to ask Nanako if she was interested in coming to the Amagi Inn in a couple of days. That was the topic of conversation when Souji came home from retching and getting rid of what he thought was an uncooked omelet.

As he joined Nanako at the table in front of the TV, he smiled and asked, "Little sis… would you be interested in staying over at the Amagi Inn in a couple of days?"

"Big bro?" Nanako looked straight at Souji, "Are you going to come too?"

"I am," Souji nodded, "I was invited, but I asked if you could come too. But… I wanted to know if you wanted to come first."

Nanako looked a little apprehensive. She did look happy that Souji invited him, however. Souji was not sure if she really wanted to go to the inn…

_Something must be bothering her…_

"What's wrong?" Souji asked.

"Do you want to go, Big bro?" Nanako responded.

_I am a little unsure of myself… going to the inn. That's why I want Nanako there._

"Only if I have my Little sis come along," Souji smiled.

Nanako returned the smile, "Okay, I'll come with you." As they silence permeated for a second, she asked, "Do they have hot springs there?"

"I believe they do," Souji nodded.

Nanako smiled, but it disappeared in an instant.

"Little sis…?" Souji turned his head a bit sideways.

"What are you going to do for Rise-chan now?" Nanako looked down at the table.

"I don't know," Souji shook his head, "But… there was no way I could have afforded that locket."

"Why?" Nanako asked.

"You saw how fancy it was, right?" Souji responded.

Nanako nodded, "Yes…"

"It's something that somebody would buy for someone special for one special occasion," Souji said, "It is not something you can go to a store, see it, and buy it… unless you have a lot of money."

_No one in Yasogami could have afforded it… except Ai Ebihara._

He remembered being dragged along by that girl with long orange hair, being forced to skip class with her to go shopping. It was a painful experience, like all shopping trips were. It was nothing like shopping with Rise, however. Ai would just buy things for the hell of it… because she just could. Rise would take care in deciding on what she wanted by trying on everything first, though it was excruciating at the time; Souji felt it was less agonizing going around with Rise after experiencing both shopping trips, though.

"Is Rise-chan special to you, Big bro?" Nanako asked.

_Why does she keep asking me that?_

"Why are you asking me that again?" Souji responded, "Is it because I never gave you a response the last time?"

Nanako shook her head… She told Souji, "It's because I think she still likes you."

Souji rolled his eyes, "Remember, that relationship was not real. She did not 'like' me to begin with."

"It looked real to me," Nanako shook her head again, "I bet Rise wanted it to be."

Souji was getting a headache again. Nanako just loved to push buttons… awkward buttons, ones that caused the nerves in the cerebral cortex to flare up. The idea that Rise had grown to like him, it was just silly. Rise had given up this faux-relationship and because of that… his life was returning to its normal, boring self.

"Little sis… I'm getting a headache. I should go to bed," Souji tried to excuse himself.

Nanako had a concerned look on her face, "Should I get you some medicine?"

"No, I will just sleep it off," Souji said. He tried to assuage his cousin, "I will be fine… I do not want you to worry about it."

Nanako stood up and walked over to Souji. She hugged her cousin and said to him, "I hope you feel better, Big bro…"

Souji could not help but to smile as he walked upstairs and skipped his daily reading to go straight to bed. He had a lot on his mind, but at least he knew he had a cousin who cared about him and would always support him.

Souji's headache was gone the next morning. Souji was saved from finding something to do when both Chie and Yosuke called to hang out with him. That is why Souji headed out towards Junes right after having some of the Nanako-prepared breakfast of sunny-side up eggs and toast.

Yosuke and Chie were waiting for Souji when he arrived at Junes. The two of them were sitting across from each other at a metal-wire table on the far end of food court. Chie and Yosuke seemed to be chatting with each other, but when they saw Souji they stopped talking and looked towards the young man with the popped collar.

Yosuke stood up, "What took you so long, man?"

Chie whacked him over the head, "We just called him. Don't pester him. You're lucky he's even hanging out with you."

Yosuke put his head down as he rubbed the part that Chie had struck, "You're so mean…"

_It's never going to end between these two, will it?_

"I was having breakfast," Souji explained, "Sorry…"

Chie shook her head and muttered, "Don't apologize…"

"So… what's up?" Souji asked, wondering the purpose of being called out other than just watching Chie eat a steak before noon.

Yosuke had this cheery smile on his face, "We're going to the Amagi Inn! That's what!"

Chie added, putting down her fork, "I haven't been there in so long. We used to stay there all time, but she's been so busy lately."

Yosuke seemed to have not heard Chie at all because he was idly saying, "Relaxing in yukata, good food, and hot springs…"

_As long as Yukiko is not the one making the food_…

Chie was ignoring Yosuke as she focused her attention on Souji, "Your cousin is coming with us, right?"

Souji nodded, "She's my younger cousin. I'm really close to her, so I hope you treat her well."

Chie asked, "What's her name?"

"Nanako…," Souji said.

"That's a cute name," Chie said, "I'm sure we'll have a lot of fun."

Off in the background, Yosuke was still saying by himself, "I wonder if they have mixed hot spring times?"

Chie stopped ignoring Yosuke at that point and the fluffy brown-haired young man now had two places to massage on his head from Chie's pummeling.

"Yosuke! You moron! Even if they did, like we would bathe during those times…," Chie told him.

"You didn't have to hit me," Yosuke muttered, "I'm going to have bruises."

"If you keep saying things like that, you'll have more than bruises," Chie threatened.

_Another kick to the nads?_

"Chie…," Yosuke shook his head.

"Anyways…," Souji tried to ignore Yosuke and Chie's feud and change the subject, "It's interesting that she invited us all now, right?"

"It's because of you, ya know?" Yosuke was still rubbing his head, but had sat down, "She waited until school was over, and wanted to see if you were over the whole…"

"The whole what?" Souji cocked his head to the side as he took the chair between where Chie had finally re-taken her seat.

"The whole Rise mess," Chie finished.

"She did not want to try and make a move unless she thought I had gotten over Rise?" Souji asked. When both of them, nodded… including Yosuke of all people; Souji said, "No one believes that this was a faux-relationship, even when Rise said so?"

Chie shook her head, "I do, but Yukiko doesn't. I'm sure you were just pretending, but Yukiko really believes that you were dating Rise."

"When Risette said it wasn't real," Yosuke said, "Then I believed it."

_I wish you would have believed it earlier, Yosuke. It would have saved me a lot trouble._

Souji just shook his head, "I just want to relax, a change of pace. The only good thing about this 'relationship' was that it was something where I could help somebody… change somebody's life, hopefully for the better."

Chie looked at Souji sympathetically. She had finally figured out how much this experience meant to him. It may not have been a lot of deliberate romanticism in this faux-relationship, but despite the annoyances from the paparazzi, agents, and other newscasters; this experience was probably Souji's most important so far. It changed his life, but Chie was a bit unsure how to classify it.

To tell the truth, Chie was happy to have Souji sitting next to her in class. He was calm and smart. He also finished first on the tests. To tell the truth, she was jealous of Rise when she found about the two of them, but finding out the purpose of this 'relationship'; it made her respect Souji that much more. But still… respect and something Chie would rather not mention were too different things.

Souji only left their side when Yosuke and Chie started pummeling on each other again. It was certainly amusing to watch them fight, but it got old after a while. There was only so much pounding that Souji could watch Chie give Yosuke.

_They would probably make a good couple, but Yosuke would probably die before they got far enough along in the relationship to get serious._

Souji wandered into the Shopping District after leaving his friends. He walked to the Southern Shopping District and by the time he walked past Marukyu; he stopped in his tracks.

"It's been a while since I bought some tofu," Souji said to no one in particular, "I have no reason to buy any, though."

Souji sighed. It was kind of depressing, thinking about the times he walked into Marukyu. It was such a difference in his life, being able to do something outside the norm… something interesting.

He had not walked five meters past the tofu shop when a policeman came up to him. The man looked very serious and seemed like he had some important to say to Souji.

"Can I help you officer?" Souji asked as the officer stood in front of him.

The officer took off his hat to wipe the sweat from his forehead. As he placed the hat back on his head, he responded, "There have been reports of bullying in the Shopping District. Have you seen anything?"

Souji shook his head, "I'm afraid I have not."

"Well… if you do, let us know," the policeman said.

"Will do," Souji said.

As the officer walked away…

_I did not know bullying was that prevalent in Inaba. What's next? Biker gangs?_

Souji decided he would leave through the Northern Shopping District. Before he had passed Aiya's, he was confronted by two older looking boys. One was gangly and had a good five inches on Souji, the other was bald and shorter than him… but he was very muscular.

_Don't tell me I just ran into the bullies… _

"Yes?" Souji stared up at the tall guy.

"Hey…," the tall guy completely ignored Souji and looked at the shorter guy, "Looks like we got another guy who is willing to give us a loan."

"What's a loan?" the shorter guy asked.

"You're a moron," the tall guy responded, "It means he is going to give us money and then we are supposed to give it back later."

The shorter guy said, "But… We're not going to return his money."

Souji muttered, "I think that was the point. He was being facetious."

"Fac… eti… ous?" the shorter man was struggling.

"Don't confuse him and don't make it harder than it should be," the taller guy said, "The girls won't come after you if you are a bloody mess."

_I can't fight. It's not like I train with a sword everyday. My occasional training with Chie won't help me._

As the muscular boy advanced menacingly towards Souji, he prepared for the worse. He was mainly preparing for the barrage of fists that would come from the two bullies. But before Souji was pummeled like Chie hits Yosuke, a tall young man with black pants and a black tank top came running from Tatsumi Textiles. This new arrival was as muscular as the shorter bully, and he had shock blond hair slicked back. He collided with the shorter boy and all Souji could see was a flurry of punches. When the bald-headed bully flew back with a bloody nose, the taller bully came in to help. A single straight right-handed punch from this new arrival knocked out a tooth of the other bully.

As the blond-haired young man stood over the two fallen bullies, he wiped off the sweat from fighting and commanded, "What did I say about bullying people!"

"We're sorry, Kanji-san…," the shorter bully got to knees, wiped the blood from his nose and muttered, "We weren't thinking."

"We're sorry…," the other bully said as an afterthought.

"Whatever…," this Kanji shook his head, "Now… Get lost! Dammit!"

The two bullies took off in a hurry. Kanji huffed in disgust at their retreating backs.

_He must have kicked their ass before._

"Kanji, right?" Souji addressed his protector.

"What about it!" Kanji seemed confrontational.

"Thanks…," Souji said.

"Uhh… it's nothing," Kanji said, "I just don't like people beating up on people. It's wrong."

"Well… I think that's a good thing to live by," Souji said.

Kanji seemed taken aback, "Well… most people don't see it that way."

"Hey you!" the policeman had entered the Northern Shopping District, near Tatsumi Textiles, and was yelling in the vicinity of Kanji and Souji, "Stop!"

"Shit… the cops…," Kanji muttered.

The cop ran up to the two of them before Souji could decide if they should run away or any other brilliant idea that Souji might concoct.

"So… you're the bully we've been looking for," the cop was looking straight at Kanji. He turned his attention to Souji, "Thanks for finding him. It wasn't safe for you to stay near him though."

"Who are you calling a bully!" Kanji's tone was rising.

Souji defended Kanji, "Kanji is no bully. He actually protected me against the bullies when they tried to steal my money."

"A likely story," the cop said. He suddenly came to a revelation, "Don't tell me… that you two work together… you are the brains and…," the cop looked at Kanji, "this guy is the brawn."

_I thought cops are supposed to have a shred of intelligence._

"That's it!" Kanji had lost his temper and he looked like he was about to rip into the cop.

The cop actually looked a little scared of Kanji. Yet, the cop was ready to stop Kanji if he came at him. The confrontation was stopped when a lady's voice cut through.

"What is going on officer?" an older lady walked out from Tatsumi Textiles.

"M… Mom!" Kanji exclaimed.

_Mom…_

"This young man is accused of bullying, Ma'am," the cop explained.

"Kanji-kun wouldn't hurt a fly. I'm afraid you have the wrong person," Kanji's mother told the cop.

"Well...," the cop seemed a little flustered at Kanji's mother's words of reassurance, "We will still be keeping an eye on him."

The cop walked a way, obviously frustrated. Kanji's mother said to Kanji, "I see you made a new friend, Kanji-kun. I hope you two get along."

"Leave me alone, you old bag!" Kanji yelled.

Kanji's mom, unfazed, walked back into Tatsumi Textiles. Kanji seemed rather embarrassed by the whole ordeal and turned towards Souji and apologized, "Sorry about that. My mom likes to do stuff like that. Sorry about the cop, too. They always think I'm a bad kid and what not."

"It's okay, and I don't think you are a bad kid. Do you go to Yasogami because I've never seen you there?" Souji stated.

"School? I just don't feel like going," Kanji sighed.

"What year are you?" Souji asked.

"I'm a first-year," Kanji told him, "But… whatever."

Kanji started to walk away; he looked like he had no intention of going back to Tatsumi Textiles or staying here any longer. Souji called out, "Hey, Kanji!"

"What…?" Kanji turned around.

"Are you doing anything tomorrow?" Souji asked.

"Why?" Kanji responded.

"I'm wondering… if you want to go to the Amagi Inn with some friends of mine," Souji explained.

_I do owe him a lot._

"Huh? The Amagi Inn…," Kanji looked confused. He shrugged, "Sure… whatever."

* * *

You know what… I finished a chapter. I hope you like it. If you don't… I'm sorry. I thought I should introduce Kanji at some point in the story, so I did. If you don't like it, too bad for you. Auf Wiedersehen


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Sadly, I do not own Persona…

There are no foggy murders here, no Shadows, no social links, and no Personas. This is about the people. At least… as far as I know. Some of the personalities are different because of the fact that there are no social links… i.e. Nanako… other personalities are different because I feel like it.

If you have questions about why my writing is like it is, especially the order of names… read my reasoning in the chapter descriptions of Samurai and Ninjas.

_Thoughts _

_

* * *

_

Souji had returned home after surviving a bully attack. Nanako had left and was hanging out with a friend of hers for the afternoon. With Souji left alone in his temporary residence, he grabbed a grape drink and sat down on the couch. Grabbing the remote from the table, he turned on the TV. As he flipped through channels, he stopped at a football, "soccer", match that was playing out.

_Is this what Nanako does everyday?_

When the first half ended, and the team from Nagoya was down by six goals, Souji went to throw out his grape drink. When Souji returned to his seat to watch the announcers lament on the porous defensive of Nagoya; he saw that the commercials were still airing. It was just too iconic that the current commercial airing at that exact moment was of Rise Kujikawa promoting her poison drink again.

_Nobody wants Quelorie Magic… they just want to see you in the swimsuit. Women are not going to look like you drinking that shit. Only men watch these commercials. Sex sells, you know…_

The second half had Nagoya being scored on six more times. Souji sighed as he wondered on why he even bothered watching this pathetic excuse of a match.

_Oh yeah… there's nothing else on._

Souji shut off the TV after the game finished. He did not even want to bother looking for anything else to watch. Souji walked upstairs and grabbed a book before heading back to seat on the couch. After making himself comfortable, Souji began to read about another hopeless fool who could not get a damn thing done without the help of a woman to comfort him. It was not that interesting of a read, but… it was something to do.

Some time later, Souji felt himself being shaken awake by a small girl with short brown ponytails tied in pink ribbons. That girl was his cousin, Nanako. Souji was unsure on how long she had been home, but she was smiling as he turned towards her.

After blinking and making sure he would be groggy, he decided to ask a simple question, "Did you have a good time with your friend?"

"Yeah!" Nanako responded gleefully, "We went over to Maki's house."

Souji nodded, "I'm glad." He stood up from the couch and said to his cousin, "Make sure you pack for tomorrow."

"Okay…," Nanako smiled. She asked, "Have you packed?"

Souji shook his head. It was the one thing he needed to get to before tomorrow afternoon when the two of them would head to the Amagi Inn. He would have an interesting surprise waiting for Yukiko… with him inviting Kanji and all. Kanji would probably scare the hell out of everyone, considering the way he dressed… not to mention his appearance. Well… it was not a complete surprise because he called ahead to the inn so there would not be a mix-up in rooms.

"It's what I'm about to do," Souji told Nanako.

Souji got rid of Nanako eventually so he could start packing. The thing was, he had completely forgotten about throwing things into a bag until he had mentioned it to Nanako. He walked upstairs and grabbed the same duffel bag that he had brought with him to Inaba and placed it on the couch he had always used for reading. If he was going to spend a day or two at the inn, he would not need at a lot of stuff… but Souji placed anything he thought he might need. A couple of changes of clothes would probably suffice, plus some toiletries.

_Just in case anyone is really shy… I better pack swim trunks._

Souji was eating dinner with Nanako, unfortunately processed crap today, when Dojima came home. He looked disheveled and ragged… probably because he had not been home for two or so days. Souji's uncle with graying hair and now half-unknotted tie. He walked to the table in the living room where Nanako and Souji were eating dinner. He looked slightly apologetic, but Souji had no plans to forgive him. Any person who abandoned his daughter all the time for work without spending any time with her was completely unacceptable.

"Nanako, I'm sorry," Dojima said.

"Umm…," Nanako did not seem how to respond.

"Is work that important, Dojima?" Souji asked.

"Big bro!" Nanako seemed surprised by Souji's question.

"Why don't you pay attention to her?" Souji asked.

"Don't ask me that sort of question," Dojima seemed annoyed, "I have my reasons for being busy."

"I see work is more important than your own daughter," Souji muttered.

Dojima exclaimed, "Souji!"

Souji all but spit through his teeth in disgust and left the table, half of his dinner untouched. Ignoring Nanako's protests of asking Souji to stay, Souji was already heading up the stairs. Souji entered his room as angry as he had ever been. It just frustrated him to no end to see how worthless Nanako seemed to be in Dojima's eyes. Through Souji's door, he could hear a very flustered and upset Nanako running upstairs. There had obviously been more words exchanged between father and daughter.

She seemed to stop by Souji's room and whispered by the door, "Big bro…"

_Does she even matter to him? Is the only point of having her around is take care of the housework?_

Souji struggled to sleep that night, and when he slept… his dreams were fitful and disturbing. It was probably for a multitude of reasons… the upcoming stay at the inn where he would be flirted with by Yukiko, the treatment of his cousin by his uncle, and his inability to take care of people. Souji awoke in the middle of a dream… one of fog and despair where he failed his best friend because he was not good enough for him or her. His best friend was cloaked in shadow and Souji could not tell who it was…

Souji headed downstairs after dressing and popping his collar. Souji stifled his yawn when he saw Dojima, not Nanako, attempting to make breakfast.

_I'm surprised the house hasn't burned down yet._

In fact, halfway through Dojima's process of attempting to make eggs… the stovetop started smoking. After Souji's uncle removed the smoking pans and put the burnt food in the sink, he poured coffee into a mug and placed it in front of Souji.

Dojima sighed as he said to Souji, "Nanako said that she is going with you to the Amagi Inn for a day or two."

"We were invited by Yukiko, the manager's daughter," Souji explained.

"The innkeeper's daughter…," Dojima said, "I see."

_Is there a problem? He's probably still pissed about last night._

"I'll be watching over Nanako, don't worry," Souji told his uncle.

Dojima looked… he looked distraught. It was as if Souji was taking an indirect shot at his ability to take care of his daughter. He was not amused by Souji's actions last night, and he might have been ashamed by his own as well. Ashamed… not by the ones he took last night, but by his past actions of who knows how long.

There was a prolonged silence, in which Souji took a few long draughts from the coffee. He had his fill of caffeine, so the only thing that was left for him to do before he headed off to the Amagi Inn was to maybe pick up another book and find Little sis.

As Souji stood up from the wooden table near the kitchen and was about to walk away, Dojima paused before saying to his nephew, "Souji…" Souji turned as Dojima continued, "Take care of Nanako and tell her… I'm sorry... sorry for everything."

Souji nodded, "I will."

Souji left his temporary home with a feeling that Dojima was finally realizing the consequences of his actions; that he was slowly losing his daughter. The only person that was left to take care of Nanako was Souji, and if Dojima's nephew wasn't there… who knows what would have happened to his daughter.

Souji made his walk to the Southern Shopping District and to the Yomenaido Bookstore. He needed a new book; it was in case he became bored while staying at the inn. Souji had finished every book he had brought or bought during his stay in Inaba, so he was scouring the stand for something to take. Luckily, he found another book about that hapless fool who could never do anything for himself. It was about the same fool who needed a girl to help him get anything done.

_Sounds familiar in a way…_

Souji paid for the book; they overcharged for everything in this damn city. He bet even that blacksmith would steal your money for those fake weapons he sold. After lightening his wallet a little bit, but adding a book; Souji had to find his cousin. There was one place he thought to look. Souji had visited with Nanako there on a weekend once before because she said it was important to her. It was important to her… her family.

Souji heard the rush of water flowing down the Samegawa River as he headed down the floodplains. The wind was blowing slightly as the leaves wavered slightly in the breeze. As Souji passed the covered benches and table, he made a beeline path towards the small girl sitting underneath the shelter. The silver-haired young man sighed and wiped his forehead of the sweat that had formed from standing out in the hot sun as he came upon the girl; the pink tank top and lighter-colored skirt was matched with the undone brown pigtails of Souji's Little sis. Her head was down and she looked depressed.

_Nanako…_

As Souji sat down besides her, he said, "Little sis… I've been looking for you."

"Big bro…," Nanako acknowledged Souji's presence, "How did you know where I was?"

"This place is special to you," Souji explained.

Nanako opened her eyes. Souji could see that tears had formed in the brown orbs. She said to him, "How come you know where to find me, but dad doesn't?"

_I need to lie… shit…_

"Your dad was worried about you, he sent me to find you," Souji said.

"He didn't know that I was here, did he!" Nanako's tears were falling now.

"That is not true, Little sis…," Souji told her.

Nanako retorted, "I don't believe you. Dad doesn't want me around."

"Nanako…," Souji called her by her real name.

Nanako turned to him; she looked straight at her cousin. "What is it?"

Souji had to figure out from what little Dojima said… what he felt about his daughter.

_He really loves her… I guess… I hope… I better give him a fiftieth chance._

"You are all he has. He needs you," Souji said, "Even though he's not around, knowing that he can come home to you… it means everything to him."

"Big bro…," Nanako's tears were streaming down her face as she hugged her cousin.

It took a minute for Souji to calm his cousin down. He waited while Nanako was ready to speak again, to let her wipe her tears and speak.

"Are you okay, Little sis?" Souji had thought about abandoning the nickname he had for his cousin for his worries of her.

"Big bro…," Nanako said with a red tinge on her cheeks, "I love you, Big bro."

Souji smiled as Nanako grabbed his arm and righted herself as he stood up. She held on for a few meters or so as they began to walk back towards home.

Arriving at the residence, the only person happier than the two of them to see Nanako come home was Dojima, who was beyond overjoyed to see her. Souji just left father and daughter to talk and went upstairs to get his bag.

A few minutes later… Nanako came running upstairs with a smile on her face. Souji could not help but form a small smile as well as he walked down with his duffel bag. Souji was followed shortly by Nanako with a small, cute, and pink backpack.

_She must use it on trips or something._

"Let's go, Big bro!" she said to her cousin as she followed him down the stairs. Her mood had improved greatly since he had found her at Samegawa.

_If I had not had that conversation with her… and whatever her dad spoke about with her; I would swear she was bipolar._

When the two reached the bottom of the steps, Dojima was waiting for him. He said to Nanako and Souji, "Be careful… take care of yourselves."

Souji nodded and Nanako responded, "I will, Dad!"

Nanako and Souji walked away from Dojima's white home and the Residential District of Inaba. They were walking through the Shopping District and to the bus station that would take them to the Amagi Inn. Souji looked over at his cousin as she got on the bus. She looked excited about spending time at the inn, a far cry from her emotional turmoil earlier that day. Souji was not sure he was quite as excited, but… as long as Nanako was excited about staying there.

_If she's happy… then I'm happy._

Souji was the first to step off the red bus and to see a very large three-story old-fashioned style inn. It looked quaint on the outside and Souji could not even imagine what the place looked like on the inside. Souji and Nanako looked at each other, Souji nodded and they headed towards large oak doors that made up the entrance. Waiting for them at the entrance was not Yukiko, but the tall, lanky but muscular young man who had saved Souji from those couple of jackasses a day ago.

"Yo!" the boy with the slicked-back hair called out.

Souji made a small waving motion in return, "Yo…"

Kanji looked down from Souji and noticed the girl who had put her hair back in brown pigtails with pink ribbons while on the bus. He asked Souji, "Is this your sister or something?"

"Well… she's my cousin, but…," Souji started, "She's my Little sis."

Nanako finished, "He's my Big bro!"

"What's your name?" Kanji asked.

Souji was a bit surprised that a man wearing a black tank top with black jeans, bleached hair, not to mention a couple tattoos on his arms; they did not seem to scare Nanako at all.

"Nanako," she said to Kanji.

"Nice to meet you, Nanako-chan," Kanji told her.

_Well…_ _if I hadn't met him beforehand, I would have considered that beyond weird._

"So… should we head inside?" Souji said idly.

The three of them walked through those large doors into the mezzanine. The lobby looked nothing like the quaint appearance of the outside of the inn. There was modern beige carpeting, lighting, and a large big screen TV for viewing the news and other related events. The mountings on the walls were impressive to all of them. The stairs leading up to the second floor was carpeted as well. Souji was sure the third floor was as well. This little inn was nicer than he expected.

Souji was looking for the front desk and maybe Yukiko as well. For the sake, of figuring out what was going on today; he would like to find his classmate soon. What he did not expect to find at the front desk was someone who looked very similar to Yukiko, just older.

_Is this Yukiko's mother?_

Souji walked up to the concierge, next to who he believed was Yukiko's mom and said, "Souji Seta, checking in with Nanako Dojima and Kanji Tatsumi."

"Seta?" the concierge began looking at a list set beneath him. Going down the list, he stopped three-quarters the way down, "Seta, group of three. I have you staying with Kanji Tatsumi and Yosuke Hanamura in room 201. Nanako Dojima is with Chie Satonaka and Yukiko Amagi in room 301."

Souji nodded, "I understand." It was an expected room assignment. He was not planning on staying with Chie or Yukiko during this little trip.

Souji re-adjusted his duffel bag as the concierge readied his paperwork. He had noticed that the woman he believed was Yukiko's mother was staring at him. Yukiko had to have told her about him. The staring was annoying him. That's when the same woman took the paperwork from the guy at the front desk and walked around the counter towards him. She said to him, "You're Yukiko's friend, right? I'm her mother."

"I guess so," Souji responded, giving a short bow, "My name is Souji Seta."

"It's a pleasure," Yukiko's mother said; "She speaks very highly of you, Souji."

"Well, thank you," Souji said as he nodded again and left her side.

Souji turned back and looked at his cousin and the "biker gang" member. They were waiting for his return. Readjusting his duffel bag again, Souji said to the two of them, "I have our key," he looked exclusively at Nanako, "I believe my friend already has your key. She has long black hair and she's probably dressed in red."

As Nanako nodded in confirmation, Kanji asked Souji, "Hey Senpai, what's our room number?"

"201…," Souji told him, "I think we should drop our stuff off and see if any of the others have arrived. I'm sure Yukiko is here, but besides her, I don't know."

After that, Souji, Nanako, and Kanji began their trip up the stairs to the second floor. Souji would take a passing glance at where the hot springs lay, but he just shook his head before turning his back around so he would not trip.

The room Souji and Kanji were apparently staying at was the closest to the stairs, to the left. Nanako's room was exactly one floor above them, so when Souji reached his room with Kanji, the silver-haired boy said to his cousin, "Your room is on 301. I'll go with you to introduce you to some of my other friends." He turned to Kanji and said to him while un-shouldering his duffle bag, "Could you take in my luggage?"

"Sure, Senpai," Kanji agreed, but he did sound a little apprehensive.

Kanji slid open the door to their room, another beige-walled room that was rather extravagant for three people to stay. The table in the center was meant for at least five or six, and there were just as many blue futons around the edge of the room. It was way too big and way too nice of a room for Souji, Kanji, and the yet to arrive Yosuke. Souji, however, barely glanced at his room before he started walking with Nanako up to the third floor.

When they reached room 301, Souji had Nanako knock on the divider at the sliding door. He did not want to walk in on Chie or Yukiko changing. He had civility and was not going to do something foolish. So, as Nanako waited for the door to open, Souji turned away from 301.

Nanako opened the door to find a girl with long black hair in a short black skirt and black blouse and a girl with brown hair in a bowl cut in very short jean shorts and a green tank top.

The girl with the long black hair, seeing Souji standing behind Nanako, smiled and called out, "Souji-kun! You're here!"

Hearing Yukiko's voice made Souji turn towards her.

_Surely she's decent if she's calling for me… hopefully._

"Hello, Yukiko," Souji responded.

"Souji-kun, you're early!" Yukiko's smile grew wider. She looked from Souji to Nanako, "Is this your cousin?"

"I'm Nanako," Nanako waved.

Chie, who was in the background, stepped in front of Yukiko and said, "So you're the Nanako-chan that Souji was talking about."

Nanako smiled and said to the tomboy, "Yep! He's my Big bro!"

"Big bro, huh?" Chie chuckled, "He does look like a good Big bro." She had to resist the urge to punch Souji on the shoulder.

Souji nodded, "She's my Little sis, alright."

_That would probably hurt like hell._

Chie looked just as happy to see Souji as Yukiko did as both high school girls gazed upon Nanako and Souji. Souji was unsure of how to feel about the whole idea.

"Souji-kun…," Yukiko told Souji, "We'll watch over your cousin."

Souji looked at Nanako, a little apprehensive as well. "Are you going to be okay?" Souji asked.

"I'll be okay," Nanako told Souji.

Souji nodded as Nanako walked into the room, joining Chie and Yukiko. Yukiko called out to Souji, who was starting to walk away from the three of them, "Dinner is in a few hours, Souji-kun…"

"Alright, see you then," Souji replied.

Souji heard Chie, Yukiko, and Nanako talking about him as he headed down the stairs. Souji was unsure of the exact subjects of their conversation, but he was sure they were probing Nanako with questions about him.

When Souji returned to 201, Yosuke had arrived at the room and was staring down Kanji. As Souji entered the room, both the fluffy-haired young man and slick-haired young man turned their gaze towards the silver-haired young man.

Yosuke, clad in red pants and red and white t-shirt questioned, "Hey! What is this gang member doing here!"

Kanji retorted, "I keep telling you! I'm not a gang member!"

"I come in here and find you with tattoos and bleached hair and expect you not be a gang-banger?" Yosuke argues.

"A gang-banger!" Kanji exclaimed.

Kanji looked angry, but Souji tried to dispel the situation. Souji said to Yosuke, "He's no gang member, Yosuke."

"What do you mean, partner?" Yosuke questioned.

"This guy…," Souji gestured towards Kanji, "He saved me from bullies that tried to attack me. There is no proof that he is actually a gang member."

"Who the hell are you?" Yosuke muttered.

"My name is Kanji," the blond-haired young man introduced himself.

Yosuke huffed. He obviously was unsure about the whole situation of having Kanji stay with them.

"Let's get along, okay?" Souji said, "We're roommates at least today and maybe tomorrow, too."

"So, Senpai…," Kanji ignored Yosuke, "When's dinner?"

"It's in a couple hours," Souji told him.

Souji looked at his duffel bag, the black bag of Kanji's, and the red bag of Yosuke's all strewn about the floor. They had settled in, at least.

The three of them contemplated heading down to the hot springs before dinner, but they decided against it. It was too early to wash the sweat off their bodies, for one. The other reason was because it the women's turn to use the hot springs, anyways.

_I doubt that Chie or Yukiko would be in there. _

The three of them spent their time conversing about their various activities of the day or, in Souji's case, he began reading his new book. A few hours later, Yosuke was surprised by a phone call and only when Kanji and Souji both yelled at him did he pick up the phone.

"Umm… hello?" Yosuke said tentatively.

He listened to what the caller had to say and responded, "Okay… okay… thank you."

Yosuke put down the rotary phone and looked at the others; he said to them, "Dinner is ready."

Souji stood up and put down his book. He looked from Yosuke to Kanji, "Should we go, then?"

"Where are we going?" Kanji looked confused.

"Apparently…," Yosuke explained, "They want us to go to the third floor to eat with the girls."

"And how did you already know?" Souji was questioned by Kanji.

Souji answered, "It's my intuition… that Yukiko would want us to come up there."

That statement made Yosuke chuckle as he walked past the boy with the popped collar.

"What?" Kanji looked confused as they all put some semblance of footwear back on and then headed up the stairs.

Room 301 was already open and Yukiko, Chie, and Nanako were waiting for the boys when they came for dinner. Their table was filled with regional, yet rustic cuisine that… excited Souji for a change. Souji could tell that the Amagi Inn did not buy all of their supplies from Junes.

_I highly doubt I will be poisoned and die from this meal. I don't think Yukiko made it. Thank God!_

Souji took a spot across from where Yosuke and Chie would eat. He had to wonder if they would kill each other during the meal. Nanako was to his left, while thankfully… Kanji took the spot to his right. That meant Yukiko was left to the head of the table.

Yosuke, between a bite of food, said to Nanako, "So, you're the Nanako-chan Souji is always talking about."

Chie hit him over the head, "Don't talk with your mouth full!"

Yukiko started chuckling, which caused both Souji and Chie to shake their heads.

Nanako nodded, respectively not speaking at the moment because her mouth was full of food, but Chie said, "She's a great kid. She's so nice."

There was not really a lot of conversation during dinner. It was mainly because they were busy eating. After dinner, Nanako said to Souji, "We're going to the hot springs, Big bro."

"Oh really?" Souji asked.

"Yeah!" Nanako smiled.

Chie nodded in agreement, "We're heading to the hot springs." She looked to her left, at Yosuke, and said, "You better not try and peek."

"You would dare and accuse me of trying to do that?" Yosuke looked affronted.

Souji chuckled as Yosuke and Chie started bickering again. Kanji just looked confused at how the two of them could be fighting so much. He asked Souji, "So… are they dating or something?"

When the two of them heard that, both Chie and Yosuke exclaimed, "No!"

_One of these days…_

Regardless of the fact that the girls were heading to the hot springs first, the boys decided to put on yukata and wait for their turns. The prospect of relaxing in a hot spring did sound pretty nice, though. The hot water working its magic on his stressed-out shoulders; it sounded great.

"Hey, Kanji!" Yosuke suddenly called out from one corner of the room.

"What, Senpai?" Kanji asked. Souji had told Kanji that Yosuke was his classmate.

"You go to our school, right?" Yosuke questioned, "How come you're never there?"

"It's 'cause I don't feel like going," Kanji explained, "There's no good reason."

"Don't you wanna go to meet some girls?" Yosuke asked. He looked at Souji, "You have to admit, there are a lot of cute girls at school…" Yosuke began idly naming girls, "Yukiko, Ai…"

_How long till he names Rise?_

As Yosuke said, "Even Risette went to Yasogami for a while."

"I just don't really care about meeting girls, Senpai," Kanji told Yosuke.

"Yes, Risette being there was the best… Say what!" Yosuke looked shocked.

_I noticed he never mentioned Chie… what a dumbass. She's cute, but he's an ass._

"You're not interested in meeting girls!" Yosuke continued.

"So…?" Kanji looked frustrated, "They're annoying… They don't accept me."

"Don't accept you?" Souji asked, "Why?"

"It's cause… I like to sew and do other arts and crafts," Kanji said very reluctantly.

Yosuke burst out laughing, "You like to sew!"

"Shut up, Senpai!" Kanji yelled.

"Who cares, Yosuke…?" Souji said, "It doesn't matter what Kanji's hobbies are."

"Senpai…," Kanji looked rather happy that Souji supported him.

"Yeesh…," Yosuke muttered. He sighed, "This place is one wacky sausage fest. Come on Kanji, I'll strip you of that 'I'm not interested' crap. Why don't you go spy on the girls at the hot spring?"

"I don't really feel like it," Kanji responded.

"I guess you're not much of a man, are you Kanji?" Yosuke teased.

Kanji looked disrespected. "I'm a man!" he proclaimed.

"Go prove yourself then!" Yosuke told him.

"Alright!" Kanji yelled, standing up, and rushing out of the room. He barely remembered to open the sliding door.

"Holy shit… he really did it," Yosuke muttered.

"You pushed him too far," Souji told Yosuke, "What did you expect to happen?"

"I know, but…," Yosuke suddenly stopped talking.

_Shit… if he's running down to the hot springs._

"Yosuke! We need to stop Kanji!" Souji exclaimed.

_Nanako is down there. I don't want her to be scarred for life._

For that reason, Souji ran out of the room and towards the stairs. Yosuke was on his tail. He hoped that his reason for following was for the same reason that his was. He had developed somewhat of a rapport as well with Nanako over dinner and Souji hoped that Yosuke understood the situation.

The changing room was full of steam, and yet… there was still no sign of Kanji. In fact, Souji had lost all sight of the muscular guy completely. He was moving around the rows of lockers, searching for a person he could not find.

_Where the hell is he?_

He did not want to actually have to run into the actual hot springs, but when a scream came from the springs… Souji raced into the springs. He wanted to keep his eyes closed so he would not see anything, but…

In order not to hit anything… or fall into the water, Souji opened his eyes slightly. The only thing Souji saw was a bucket flying past a flabbergasted Kanji at high speeds. When Souji woke up, he was back in room 201, being watched over by Yosuke and Kanji. Kanji had a bruise on his head. His head hurt. Actually, his whole body hurt; he must have fallen when hit by the bucket.

"Dude!" Yosuke said, "You took a bucket straight to the head. Kanji was only grazed by one."

"That was crazy," Kanji said, "Even the girls were worried for you after smacking in you the head."

"After they had changed, of course," Yosuke smirked.

_Oh darn… _

"Your cousin was really worried," Yosuke continued, "She really likes you, you know?"

Souji nodded, "Yeah… she's great."

"You're one hell of a trooper, Senpai," Kanji said, "I'm glad you came after me… I mean… that could have been me on the floor, right now."

Yosuke tapped Kanji on the shoulder and said sarcastically, "I know… it's so great to see Souji on his back, unconscious."

"Is there a hole in my head or something?" Souji questioned.

Yosuke chuckled, "No… your forehead is just really red. I'm sure it'll disappear in a couple of hours."

"Good…," Souji said with a yawn. He felt exhausted for some reason.

"Chie must have really knocked the shit out of you," Kanji said, noticing Souji's yawn.

The two mainly uninjured boys looked at Souji, "So, Souji… we're heading to the springs. Do you think you can join us?" Yosuke asked.

Souji wanted to get up… he knew that the hot water would do wonders for his sore body. But… he did not think he would be able to make it there without collapsing. It would be so hard for him to make it there.

Souji said reluctantly, "I'm sorry, but I think I'll just rest instead."

Yosuke stood up and walked over to the door. "We'll see you in a few," he said.

Souji relaxed in his futon. He knew he felt a little unclean, but what was he going to do about it? This was certainly not in his routine… getting hit by a bucket in the Amagi Inn. The whole trip was outside his routine… something to do. Even if he was trying to dodge contact with Yukiko, somewhat… it was nice to go outside his normal activities.

_I wonder if Yosuke will feel awkward in the springs._

Souji awoke to a dark room. He had fallen asleep with the lights on… he was not going to wait for Yosuke and Kanji, and he did not feel like grabbing his book. His body, even his forehead, felt a lot better than when he woke the first time. The sleep must have done a lot of good.

He turned his head to see that Yosuke and Kanji were sleeping.

_Lucky bastards… they get to sleep after relaxing in the nice… hot… water._

Souji decided that it might be best to just go back to sleep. He might as well… everyone else was already asleep. All of the pain might be gone, but… he could probably head into the springs before the others woke up.

_What the hell!_

Souji was startled by a knock on the dividers of the sliding doors. Looking again at Kanji and Yosuke, neither of them moved a muscle. Kanji muttered a few incomprehensible words, but did not wake up. Souji looked at his watch…

_11p.m., shit… Who's bugging me at this hour? Yukiko? Chie? If it's Nanako… okay… If it's someone else though._

Souji slipped out of the futon and wrapped his yukata around his body. He cursed softly as he maneuvered around the room because he hit his leg on the corner of the table. It was too dark to walk; the only illumination coming from the light outside the room. Souji hoped that the sudden flash of light when he opened the door would not wake up his two roommates, either. The person knocked again, and Souji was getting frustrated.

_Whoever is behind this door is going to get an earful… unless it's Nanako… or if the person is dying._

Before the person could knock again, Souji slid open the door. As the door opened, Souji was hit by a red blur wearing the Amagi Inn-provided yukata.

_You have to be kidding me._

* * *

This was a difficult chapter to write. I've been on the road all week and working on other things. I've also been playing my saxophone a good amount. I hope you read this and I hope you enjoy it. I also hope that you pray for those in Japan affected by the earthquake. Auf Wiedersehen and take care.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Sadly, I do not own Persona…

There are no foggy murders here, no Shadows, no social links, and no Personas. This is about the people. At least… as far as I know. Some of the personalities are different because of the fact that there are no social links… i.e. Nanako… other personalities are different because I feel like it.

If you have questions about why my writing is like it is, especially the order of names… read my reasoning in the chapter descriptions of Samurai and Ninjas.

_Thoughts _

This chapter and the past one is purely fan service basically. I mean, what Persona story is complete without a visit to the Amagi Inn? Well, I hope this doesn't suck.

* * *

Souji opened the sliding door of his room 201 in the Amagi Inn, only to be hit by a pile of long dark red hair.

_No way…_

Souji's arms were being pinned to his side as he made eye contact with the dark brown eyes of Rise Kujikawa. He could see… feel her bright smile even though he was in darkness. Her red hair was not in ponytails. Instead, it was down, long past her shoulders, and it was in curls. Rise Kujikawa had appeared in the Amagi Inn and somehow, found Souji Seta in his room.

"Souji-kun!" Rise exclaimed.

_Shit… Should I get mad at her for barging in here?_

"Rise-chan, you're killing me…," Souji choked out, "I… can't breath."

"Oh…," Rise released Souji from her death grip, "I'm so sorry…"

"Rise… there are people sleeping in here," Souji said, keeping his voice down.

Rise put her head down, "I'm sorry Souji… I'm just excited. I missed you."

Souji held his hands up in front of his body. He said, "It's okay…"

He stepped into the hallway and Rise turned so she could see him. He really wanted to get a better look at her. He really had no idea what she was doing here, and he wanted to know. Souji closed the door behind him so they could have a real conversation.

"Now… we can talk," Souji said.

"Souji-kun…," Rise smiled.

Souji could tell she was happy… bubbly even. He needed to ask, "Why are you here, Rise-chan?"

"I'm here to shoot a commercial," Rise said, "A commercial for Quelorie Magic."

_Oh good god…_

"At a hot springs?" Souji tried to hide his distaste of that drink.

_Let's think about this… they're shooting a commercial in a hot springs?_

"They wanted to take their commercials in a new direction," Rise explained.

Souji asked a question he… had to ask, "Why these hot springs… the hot springs at the Amagi Inn?"

"My grandmother lives here, you know… so I can visit her while we shoot a commercial or two," Rise explained.

_So she's headed out to Marukyu…_

Rise continued, twiddling her thumbs…, "Well, I wanted to visit my friend."

"That's nice of you," Souji smiled.

That made Rise smile, but Souji asked, "How did you know I was in that room?"

Rise looked a little embarrassed as she admitted, "I may have… asked one of those guys at the desk if you were staying here." She held up a pen, "I may have signed a few autographs."

_That's a little scary. Bribing people now… only a few autographs?_

"What if I had not have been there?" Souji asked.

"Umm… I'd be a little depressed that I'd have to wait to see my friend," Rise admitted. She still looked a little nervous. She asked idly, "Is Nanako-chan here, too?"

"She's staying in a room on the third floor with two classmates of mine," Souji said, "301…"

Rise smiled, "I'm in 303… I can say hi to her later."

_I'm sure Yukiko would just love seeing you, Rise-chan._

"Maybe later," Souji said. He had more questions for Rise, but this question…

Rise seemed to notice Souji's tension, so she said to him, "Souji-kun, you look so uneasy." She asked, "What's wrong?" Souji could tell that she wanted to hug him again.

"They are having you film a commercial in a hot springs. Don't you think that's a little overkill?" Souji asked, "I mean… you're at a... hot… springs…"

Rise chuckled and her smile grew wider, "Souji-kun… you didn't think I'd be shooting in the nude, did you?"

Souji did not say anything, but Rise could tell he was thinking, _"You are at a hot springs…"_

Rise put her left hand on the edge of her yukata and pulled back just enough for Souji to see a swimsuit strap. She was chuckling the whole time she did this. "You're so silly," She joked with Souji.

"You could have just told me straight away," Souji pretended to act hurt.

"It's more fun to tease you," Rise smiled. She liked to smile at Souji.

_Exactly why it was a bad reason for her to show up._

It was another reason why it was a shock for Souji when Rise grabbed hold of his arm and said to him, "You didn't happen to bring swim trunks, did you… Souji-kun?"

Souji looked at Rise sideways, "Why…?"

"We can use you in the commercial!" Rise exclaimed.

_You got to be kidding me… I don't want to be in a Quelorie Magic commercial. I don't want to be exploited with Rise as she's being used as a sex symbol._

Souji expressed his insecurities, but Rise was not going to have any of it, "Come on, Souji-kun!" She gave him big puppy dog-like eyes, "Do it for me, please?"

"They're just objectifying you," Souji said, crossing his arms.

Rise began to pout, "That's why I want you there. I won't feel as bad if you're there."

Souji muttered under his breath, "I have a feeling that it may be counter-intuitive if I do this."

"So, you're not going to help me?" Rise asked. A small frown formed on her face and her eyes rounded more than usual.

Souji sighed at the sight of Rise like this, "Okay… but you'll have to give me a minute to get changed."

"I told the crew to wait thirty minutes for me to convince you once we found out you were here," Rise winked.

Souji had taken one step back, he had not yet turned around, but he said, "You knew the whole time that I was going to agree to this."

Rise just smiled and winked at him again. It left Souji grumbling as he headed back to 201 and carefully opened the sliding door. He had a hard task ahead of him. He needed to figure out how to reach his swim trunks without waking up Yosuke or Kanji. Souji used the light from his cell phone as he started to maneuver his way around the large table, the futons, and the luggage.

_Cell phones… the perfect flashlights._

Souji found his black duffel bag in-between his other two roommates' luggage. Pushing them to the side and unzipping the bag, he dug through the small amount of clothes and toiletries and found the black pair of swim trunks he had bought during his stay in Inaba.

_I never thought I would have a use for this thing in an instance like this._

He was not exactly sure if he was putting them on the right way, or if he was putting them on backwards… Souji would deal with that later. He undid his hakama…

Souji was careful as he maneuvered back around the table. He held his breath as he brushed up against Yosuke's futon. Souji thought he might have woken up the fluffy brown-haired roommate, but… Yosuke kept on snoring. With a sigh of relief, Souji snuck out of the room.

Apparently, Rise had headed towards the springs and was waiting for him? Hopefully? Souji could not handle any more surprises from anyone else. If he was ambushed by Yukiko on his way here… he would go crazy and run out of the Inn. He had really mixed feelings as he started walking down the stairs and past the front desk.

_Why the hell am I doing this? Oh yeah, I know… one reason. Rise asked me to… no, she puppy dog-eyed me to. Damn her… and her damn puppy dog eyes… I guess I did miss her enough to do this for her._

As Souji drew closer to the springs and weaved his way through the locker rooms; he started finding cords and what he expected was camera equipment. He only hoped that what Rise told him was not a complete lie. He did not want it to be more risqué than it already was. It was not up to him, though. It would be up to those crazy bastards behind the cameras.

Souji found himself, as he stepped out into the large springs, in a mess of large video cameras and other lights. There were a lot of guys standing around, adjusting various pieces of equipment. There were a few people chatting away, probably giving directions about the impending commercial. Souji did not really care about that. He was only looking for Rise so he could talk to someone till he could get this over with.

"Souji-kun!" Souji heard Rise's voice from the left side of the springs.

Souji turned his head and then his body to see the person that dragged him into this torturous affair.

_Yosuke was right… Rise really does have long legs._

As she walked around the rocky outcropping that surrounded the springs, Souji could see her that she was wearing a white bikini that left far less to the imagination than the previous Quelorie Magic commercials. Souji did his best to keep his gray-colored eyes up on her own brown orbs. Souji's struggles to keep his eyes up were noticed by the red-haired girl, and that caused a smile from the young idol.

_At least I haven't been hit by a bucket yet._

"You are so cute, Souji-kun," Rise's smile was growing.

"Anyways…," Souji muttered, "I showed up, like I said I would."

Rise seemed to be sizing Souji up, "I didn't know you were so muscular, Souji-kun."

He didn't consider himself muscular; he just did not consider himself chubby or overweight. Souji did not know where Rise was getting these compliments from. Maybe it was the basketball?

A voice from behind broke up the pair's conversation, "Risette! We need to get started here!"

Rise called back in return, "Coming!" She said to Souji with her cheery smile, "Gotta get ready…"

Rise turned around and headed towards a short, kind of chubby man with thick glasses. He seemed to be the director of the shoot. He was giving directions to Rise as soon as she came close to him. It had kind of pissed Souji off… that he saw a lot of leering eyes following Rise as she had walked towards the director. It disgusted Souji that they would look at his friend like that.

His frustration of seeing that was broken when a tall man with parted black hair and dark, inky eyes asked, "Are you the guy Rise was talking about?"

Souji was a bit startled as he responded, "I guess so… I'm Souji."

The tall man nodded and said, "I figured as much, Souji-san. The director wants you to go towards the middle of the springs. As far as you can go before you have to tread water."

Souji sighed. He was not sure how this was going to work. "If that's what you want," Souji shrugged. This was all for Rise… otherwise, he would not do it.

Souji looked about as he stepped into the hot water. It was refreshing to finally get into the water… he just wished he could dip his forehead underneath. It would probably start hurting again tomorrow morning. He could not see Rise in the water, or around the edge. She kept disappearing, and he had no idea what the hell the commercial was about. The steam would probably blur the whole damn thing anyways…

The director, the chubby guy, was behind the biggest camera now. He called out from behind the camera towards Souji, "Hey! New guy! You don't really have to do much of anything… We just want you to stand there and smirk at the camera."

_Smirk?_

Souji gave a small practice smirk worthy of Rise towards the camera. It caused both the director and his assistant to say, "That's good. When the red light comes on… make sure you're smirking…"

_No touch-up or anything? I guess I don't matter enough. Then again, Rise didn't have any makeup on when he saw her either. Huh..._

He thought there was going to be a cue before the red light came on, and it came from the director. It came in the form of him holding up three fingers, lowering to two, and then to one.

_Here goes nothing._

The red light flashed and the right side of Souji's mouth curved up slightly. He was extremely startled when Rise burst out of the water to Souji's left, holding a can of that disastrous Queloric Magic in her left hand.

_Holy shit…_

Souji could hear the can being opened as she took a drink of the diet whatever it was. The water was dripping off the can as she was taking a swig of it. The look of a sopping wet Rise in a small-ish bikini must be intoxicating… that's exactly what the agency must have been aiming for.

Rise had moved the can away from her mouth and started talking to the camera, "Even an idol has to keep a trim figure… especially if she wants to stay on top. I drink Quelorie Magic to slim down and be able to eat what I want."

Rise's right arm went around his shoulder blades as she placed her head as close as possible on his left shoulder, which surprised him for a moment. Even though Souji was surprised, he almost instinctively put his left arm around Rise's soft, bare waist. It made Rise's smile grow.

Rise continued her dialogue with that showbiz smile, but her eyes were closed, "How do you think I'm able to be with guys like him?"

_What a way to lower a girl's self-esteem, but with a commercial like this._

The director made a motion and the red light went off. Immediately, Souji released his grip on Rise. The director's smile was evident as he said, "A little improv… but I liked your work you two." The director continued, "I don't know… maybe you should work together some more."

The assistant added, "We'll add the commercialized voice later."

Souji closed his eyes as he thought about doing more commercials where he had to watch his friend being exploited. He didn't think he wanted to be involved in them.

Rise had grasped Souji's arm and looked at Souji sideways. Souji only glanced at her out of the corner of his eye as she said, "I told you this was a good idea. They love you."

"Ehh…," Souji didn't want to say anything.

"Okay… that's a wrap. Shut it down for today," the director said, which caused Rise to release her grip and head for the edge of the springs. When she stepped out, she was immediately handed a towel by someone who, to Souji's discontent, took a moment to stare straight down first.

_He's probably twelve years older than her… perv…_

When Souji stepped out, there was no one to hand him a towel. He was not the star; more so, Souji did not have breasts for people to stare at either. Maybe if he could find some girl to hand him a towel so he would not be randomly searching for one.

He had given up his search and was going to the towel rack near his entrance when a young woman who was short in stature and wore thin glasses handed him a towel. She had a bob cut, but she looked incredibly cute. She could not have been a few years older than Souji. If her hair was purple she would have looked like…

"She loves you, you know," the girl said to Souji while handing him a towel.

It took a moment to register in Souji's mind what the girl had said as he began drying off. When it finally hit, "What…?"

"You don't notice it?" the girl raised an eyebrow, "Or… do you not want to notice it?"

Souji responded, "I don't see what you are seeing."

_What is with everyone thinking there is this love connection between us?_

"Wait…," Souji held up his hands, "Who are you?"

"Oh… of course," the young woman nodded and then explained herself, "I'm an anthropology student that is working with… studying the effects that Risette has on older men through her modeling, TV, and commercial shoots."

_Oh… She would have enough to write a dissertation with all of the information Rise could provide._

The anthropology student gave her own small smile, "But it seems you have your own effects on women, Souji-kun."

"I don't see it," Souji shrugged.

"Well… take a look," the anthropology student motioned towards Rise, who was talking to the director. As Souji glanced idly over at the young idol that now had a towel on her hair as well, the intern said to Souji, "Pay attention… see how she glances in your direction."

As soon as the black-haired girl finished her phrase, Rise glanced over in Souji's direction for just a moment before turning back to the director.

Souji focused on the anthropology student and said, "Okay… so she looked at me. What does that mean? I still don't believe you about what you said."

"It means… that no matter what she has to discuss with the director… she wants to talk to you. You are the most important person to her," the young woman explained.

"Sure… if that's what you believe," Souji closed his eyes.

"I started researching about Rise when she came back to her work," the young woman said to Souji, "She seemed happy, definitely happier than she looked when she left… at least according to TV. It just looked like something was wrong. But… when the decision went through to come back to Inaba… Rise lit up like I had never seen her before. She was so cheerful. At first, I thought it was to see her grandmother again. No… it was because of you."

Souji ran a hand through his wet hair. Everyone liked to dump something on him. This was too much… Souji did not know what to think.

The girl took out her notebook and began jotting down a few notes, "Maybe… I should change my topic." She looked like she was going to giggle as she said, "You two are much more interesting subjects than perverted old men." She became business-like again, "Rise's coming this way, so I better get to work… so much to do."

The girl turned and walked away from the steamy springs, so Souji swiveled back to where Rise was talking to the director. He found Rise had finished her discussion with her boss and was headed straight to her friend.

"Souji-kun!" Rise exclaimed as she came up to Souji, "I'm sorry…"

Souji responded, "About what…?"

"I didn't really explain anything, the crew didn't really explain anything before the commercial started," Rise explained, as she moved closer to him. Souji could feel the steam from the springs rising between them. Rise continued, "You had no idea what was going to happen."

_Tell me about it._

"Well, it's over now," Souji shrugged, "Don't worry about it…"

Rise looked disheartened, "I don't believe you, Souji-kun…"

Souji shook his head, "I told you… don't worry about it."

_It actually did kind of bother me._

"Come on, everyone! Wrap time!" the director called out.

Rise grabbed Souji's arm. She looked annoyed, "Let's go…"

He barely had the time to grab his own hakama as she dragged him towards the exit of the springs. By the time they had exited the locker room, he was harried and out of breath. Rise had rushed him out of there at nearly breakneck speeds.

Souji looked at Rise… she looked a little tired as well. He asked her, "Are you okay?"

Rise muttered, "Sorry…"

"About what?" Souji said, dislodging his arm so he could massage it. His arm hurt from being pulled around.

"After we finish the shoots, they always have a wrap party where they drink and do other silly things," Rise explained. She continued with a frown, "They never invite me, saying I'm just a kid."

"That's no fun," Souji responded.

_I have a feeling that a tipsy Rise would be a bad thing though._

Rise wasn't finished as she said to Souji, "Though… I heard some of the girls working with the agency that they were going to invite you to the wrap party." She looked miserable, "I hope you aren't mad at me for pulling you away."

_I guess that anthropologist person was right._

"I'm not much of a drinker," Souji comforted Rise, "I think I will be okay."

"Well… you were talking to Ayame-san," Rise looked unsure, "She looked happy talking to you."

"Was she the girl with the short hair and the glasses?" Souji questioned.

Rise nodded and Souji put his thumb and forefinger on his nose. Souji sighed, "She was explaining her work to me."

When Rise did not look very convinced and he could not convince her, Souji had to be the one to drag her away from the locker rooms and towards the front desk. A very large TV was placed nearby; it looked like it could swallow someone whole.

"Come on, Rise-chan," Souji told her, "Let's just go back and not worry about it."

Rise looked frustrated, but nodded. She listened to Souji's plea.

Souji tightened the knot on his hakama as he took a single step up the stairs. He had to admit the truth to her, "Nanako found this great birthday gift that both she and I thought we should buy for you. I couldn't afford it, though."

Rise was standing at the foot of the stairs as she listened to Souji's statement. She responded, "At least you remembered my birthday."

"I didn't want to send you a card. I didn't think you would see it," Souji said.

Rise shook her head, "I wouldn't have. I signed one card and that's the only one I saw."

"I just wish I could have bought you that gift," Souji shrugged, "I think I disappointed Nanako even more than myself."

A small smile appeared on Rise's face for the first time since the end of the commercial. She said to Souji, "You'll just have to find something to give me."

_Oh dear…_

Souji and Rise made their way to 201. Souji was planning to finally get some restful sleep, but… he was unsure how to end this little conversation and event. He knew it would not end easily.

Rise looked at Souji, her face was still had some discontent on it. She said to him, "We should have our own little party."

"Hmm?" Souji focused his attention right on Rise's dark brown eyes.

The mood around her lightened a little as she reiterated, "Our own wrap party, Souji-kun."

Souji gave a light chuckle, "What would we need for it?"

"I don't know," Rise shrugged, "That's why you're here."

_If you want to have fun… what would we need?_

"We need shaving cream and a felt pen," Souji told Rise.

"Shaving cream?" Rise looked confused… She put on a smirk, "What do you need it for?"

"Get that out of your mind," Souji said as he then explained, "I'm talking about messing with my roommates, Yosuke and Kanji."

She frowned, "Aww…" She continued, "Well… I'll go up to my room and get some shaving cream. A felt pen, kinda like the ones in signing autographs with?"

Souji nodded, "That's what I meant."

Rise waved him off and set off for 303. It seemed like there was so much drama surrounding Rise wherever she went. It would probably be a thousand times calmer once she left, but it so much more boring as well.

_At least I know I'll be public enemy #1 again once they see me in a commercial with Rise again. Especially with her arm around me and mine around her… At least I won't be seen kissing her or something like that._

Rise came back down the stairs a couple minutes later with her hair still wrapped in a towel. She handed Souji the autograph pen and a can of pink shaving cream. In her other hand was a can of juice drink.

_Pink… heh._

Rise opened up her juice drink and asked, "Okay… so now what?"

Souji slowly slid open the door to room 201 and said, "We have some fun."

Souji flipped open his black cell phone to illuminate his way into the room. The idea of an unknown action seemed to excite Rise as she smiled and flipped open her pink cell phone while sliding the door close behind them.

_Let's get Kanji first…_

Souji motioned to Rise as he gave her the shaving cream to hold for a moment. The two made their way to the second-closest futon to the sliding door, both of them being careful not to bump into the table and wake either Yosuke or Kanji. Rise had no idea what was going on, but she was excited now.

Souji looked upon the shock-blond gang-like member named Kanji. He was sleeping soundly, but his feet were sticking out over the edge. Not running into the long table made for ten was one thing, but not tripping over the gang-banger was another completely different matter.

"He looks scary," Rise said to Souji, looking at Kanji with her pink cell phone.

"He saved me from some bullies," Souji smiled.

Rise smiled back, "And we're messing with him?"

Souji opened the felt pen and bent down so he was right over Kanji's face. He faced Kanji and slowly wrote the words 'biker chick' on Kanji's forehead. Souji had to resist the urge to laugh at what he wrote.

"Biker Chick?" Rise chuckled.

Souji held back his own chuckle, "It's complicated."

"Okay, okay…," Rise said, "What are we doing to your other friend? Does it involve the shaving cream?"

Souji nodded and took the shaving cream from Rise after capping the felt pen. After handing the felt pen back to Rise, Souji maneuvered back around Kanji and the table towards the person closest to the door.

"This is that one guy who tried to ask me out, right?" Rise questioned.

"I guess you're right," Souji responded, remembering Yosuke's attempt a while back.

"Have fun…," Rise's mood became mischievous.

Souji set down his cell phone near Yosuke so he could see him. When Rise did the same, Souji pulled out a feather and popped the top off the pink can of shaving cream. He went down to Yosuke's face level and started spraying shaving cream into his right hand.

"Oh… I know what you're doing," Rise said.

Rise smiled at Souji and Rise smiled back. Souji began tickling Yosuke's face with the feather. At first, it caused Yosuke to twitch slightly. A moment later, Souji moved the feather and his hand back as Yosuke moved his right hand and slapped the shaving cream onto his face.

Rise could not help but to laugh this time. Souji tried to quiet her, but he was unable to. She just would not stop laughing about seeing Yosuke put shaving cream on his face.

"My turn now…," Rise said to Souji, telling him to change positions so that she could have a turn at making Yosuke look foolish.

Five minutes later, Souji and Rise left room 201. Yosuke was now completely covered in shaving cream. Once they had closed the door on Souji's room, Rise burst out laughing. Souji could not help but to join her.

Rise said to Souji, as the two stood across from 201, "Thanks… it was so much fun. If we hadn't done this…"

Souji felt himself being enveloped in Rise's arms. She had hugged him again and he could feel her warmth against his. He always felt weird when Souji was hugged by Rise like this.

_I guess she needed this._

"This was better than a wrap party," Rise told him, releasing him from the hug.

"I'm glad you're okay," Souji said.

Rise looked like she was going to turn away to go, but before she did, she told Souji with a smile, "Remember… you still have to find something for me for my birthday."

_To think… she was forlorn about an hour ago…_

Souji sighed…

* * *

Not my best work. I'm stuck in a hotel room because there is plane trouble and I can't get off the ground. I've been all over the country playing saxophone and only been working on this chapter sporadically, damaging its value, so I hope you can bear with it. Please, take it with a grain of salt because there is not that much left in this story. It originally was supposed to be a one-shot, imagine that. Well… Auf Wiedersehen.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Sadly, I do not own Persona…

There are no foggy murders here, no Shadows, no social links, and no Personas. This is about the people. At least… as far as I know. Some of the personalities are different because of the fact that there are no social links… i.e. Nanako… other personalities are different because I feel like it.

If you have questions about why my writing is like it is, especially the order of names… read my reasoning in the chapter descriptions of Samurai and Ninjas.

_Thoughts _

This could potentially be the last chapter. I don't know. I may lose interest again… or get too busy.

* * *

Rise and the rest of her film crew had arrived late in the night, and by the time Souji woke up in the morning; she was already gone. Souji went up to room 303 to try and give her pink cell phone she had forgotten to take back with her, but no one answered. He could understand why she left the Amagi Inn so early… it was to bring as little attention as possible to herself. Souji had no idea if Rise had left Inaba yet, but… it would make sense if she did. Besides, he would not want a repeat of her last time in this city. There was so much drama. Souji thought Rise was staying longer, but it may be in her best interests to leave early.

_My head hurts… though it might be partially due to that bucket._

Souji wanted to look at a mirror. He bet he actually looked awful, and it made him wonder the director did not use make up on him last night. Souji thought he knew though.

_To make Rise look better…_

There was probably a huge bump on his forehead and Souji felt his head. Sure enough, a bump had formed. At least, Rise had not mentioned anything… at least if it was there last night.

Even that unfortunate annoyance of having a bump on his head did not dissuade his amusement on seeing both Yosuke awake with shaving cream on his face, and Kanji with 'biker chick' on his face. A full range of emotions came out from between the two of them.

When Yosuke sat up… he felt something weird on his face so he touched his left cheek and asked no one in particular when he removed a little bit of shaving cream, "What the hell?"

Souji was smirking as Kanji started laughing at him. Kanji had sat up as well as he told Yosuke, "Dude… your whole face is covered in shaving cream."

"You're kidding me, right?" Yosuke asked, but still started moving his hand over his face. He found shaving cream over all of his orifices. He yelled, "Damn it! What is going on here!"

"I guess someone snuck into our room and put shaving cream on your face," Souji said, now chuckling.

Yosuke glared at Souji and turned towards Kanji. It was then he noticed the words that were written on the gang-banger's face. All of Yosuke's anger dissipated and he burst out laughing. Kanji looked confused.

"What's so funny?" Kanji asked. When Yosuke didn't answer, instead only continued to laugh… Kanji turned to Souji. Souji was laughing as well. "Dammit! What's so funny!"

Yosuke finally managed to speak his mind, "Kanji… someone came in and wrote something on your face."

Oddly enough, Kanji had a hand-mirror in his own duffel bag. Souji would have to borrow it later. Kanji checked his face for what had been written on his large face. When the blong-haired boy saw that the words 'biker chick' had been written… steam began to pour out of Kanji's ears. All the while, Souji and Yosuke were holding their sides, laughing to death.

"This isn't funny, Senpai!" Kanji yelled, throwing the mirror to the ground. The shards of metal from the hand-mirror scattered among the carpet.

_I was going to use that…_

"Alright, alright…," Souji tried to stop laughing, but it was hard.

Yosuke was struggling to stop as well, but still managed to say while sitting on his futon, "Well… who did this to us?"

The three of them began pondering who did it. Souji wondered how long it would take the pair to figure out it was Rise and Souji… well only him. He did all the work, Rise just watched and provided the equipment… an accessory to his work then.

"I wonder why Souji wasn't attacked, ya know?" Kanji muttered to them.

"Yeah… Souji did not have anything on his face," Yosuke realized.

This was dangerous. They had figured out the obvious… far too quickly. Souji was sitting down with the two of them, but he needed to save his ass… so he stood up and said, "I do have a bucket-sized bump on my head."

"Oh yeah…," Yosuke confirmed, "You were hit on the head with a bucket by the girls." He thought for a second and asked, "You think… the girls did it to us?"

"You saying Yukiko-senpai and Chie-senpai did this shit to us!" Kanji asked.

Yosuke explained, "Well… maybe they felt like Souji had been punished enough with the bucket. Yukiko wouldn't do anything more to Souji, anyways." Souji rolled his eyes, and then Yosuke continued, "This could be punishment for trying to sneak into the springs."

"Did they even see us, though?" Kanji questioned. He said, "I thought they only saw Souji. That's why they threw the bucket at him."

"They must have known he was chasing after you or something," Yosuke said.

"So… it was Yukiko-senpai," Kanji said to himself. He rubbed his fists together and stood up.

"And Chie…," Yosuke added.

"It certainly could be," Souji tried to spread the seeds of accusation with Yosuke and Kanji.

They both stood up and made as if they were headed towards the sliding door. That was when Souji stopped them. He said to the pair of angry roommates, "You might want to get dressed first."

Yosuke and Kanji looked at each other. They were definitely not dressed to go gallivanting on a raid against a pair of potential marauders. They shook their heads in agreement. Yosuke turned his head towards Souji and said to him, "Thanks…"

_I guess Yosuke and Kanji did not even wonder why I was already dressed. Morons…_

While Yosuke and Kanji were hastily throwing on clothes, Souji was trying to fix his hair. He was having issues without the help of an available mirror. He began searching for another one, hidden behind a closet or something. Souji gave up after a while, his search proving futile. The mirror was probably right in front of him, but he was too stupid to see it. He decided to let his hair be for now. When Yosuke and Kanji ran into the girls' room, he was sure there would be plenty of rooms.

_Even Little Sis…_

He didn't think about Nanako before making that claim. The other boys did not mention her when they were accusing the girls. They must have thought that a girl like Nanako would never do something as dastardly as a shaving cream attack.

Souji watched Kanji and Yosuke storm out of the room, headed for room 301. Kanji was wiping on his forehead, fruitlessly trying to remove the words placed on them as he went up the stairs with the fluffy-haired young man. Souji hung back and shut the sliding door that they had left open as lazily headed up the stairs that they had climbed up so quickly. He had a small chuckle at his deviousness for he had escaped suspicion for a while. Souji stopped a few steps from the top of the third floor, and for good reason. The room 301 was right next to the stairwell. The sliding door was closed, but Souji could hear the shouting of Yosuke and Chie from his location well enough.

"What do you mean we did this to your face!" Chie was yelling, "I didn't attack you with shaving cream!"

"Don't deny it…," Yosuke accused her, "You came in the dead of the night and sprayed shaving cream all over my face."

"That makes no sense at all," Chie said.

"Snrk…," Yukiko was starting to laugh and that caused Chie to turn her head.

Yukiko pointed at Kanji. Chie looked at Kanji's forehead and Chie started laughing as Yukiko could not contain her laughter any longer.

"Yukiko-senpai!" Kanji yelled, "It's not funny!"

Kanji was yelling at all three of them as even Yosuke began laughing again. Souji let out a chuckle from the top of the stairs, but it looked like Kanji could not hear him from here.

Eventually, the three had stopped laughing and the yells between Chie and Yosuke began anew. Souji shook his head; they would be at this for a while longer.

Eventually, the door slid open. At first, Souji thought it might be one of his classmates, or Kanji. Yet, when the person who stepped out was barely past his waist and was wearing a pink backpack, Souji exhaled his held breath. It was Nanako, his Little sis, not Chie or Yosuke.

The girl with short brown pigtails smiled upon seeing her Big bro, but still looked concerned. Souji could not blame her. Nanako was probably wondering what crazy thing had happened to him and who Souji was going to blame for his misfortunes. Yet, Nanako could see no remnants of shaving cream on Souji's face, or markings on his forehead. The only thing she could see was the large red marking from the bucket that had hit him last night that was forming into a nice bump.

Souji broke the ice as the young girl with a pink tank top and white skirt smiled at Souji, "Little Sis..."

Nanako did look a little worried as she asked a question, "Are you okay, Big bro?"

Souji knew she saw his injury and was concerned about the hit sustained from the accidental foray into the springs. He replied, "I'll be fine."

She replied cheerfully, "Okay…"

"Are you tired of their arguing?" Souji asked, referring to Chie, Yosuke, and the others.

Nanako nodded and said, "It's too loud." At that moment, a crash was heard. Something must have been broken by the incessant quarrelling.

"There's too much drama around them," Souji nodded.

So, Souji began walking with Nanako back down to 201 where he slid open the sliding door. He maneuvered around Yosuke's and Kanji's duffel and proceeded to grab his own bag. Souji shut the sliding door behind him as he walked away from 201. He would possibly make breakfast with Nanako when they got home because neither of them was staying here.

As Nanako walked down with Souji to the front desk, she asked, "Did you do those things to your friends?"

_My Little sis is too smart…_

Souji smiled and responded, "How'd you figure that out?"

"Chie-san and Yukiko-san were with me the whole time last night," Nanako explained.

Souji nodded. "Yeah… I am the one who wrote on Kanji's forehead and let Yosuke put shaving cream on his face."

"That wasn't very nice, Big bro," Nanako chided him.

"It is a long story," Souji tried to explain his reasoning; "The main idea behind it was to cheer up Rise-chan."

"Rise-chan!" Nanako's ears perked up upon hearing the idol's name.

"She came late last night to shoot a commercial," Souji said, "We held a wrap party after the shoot." Souji explained, "She left this morning, before I got up."

Nanako looked disappointed that she had no chance to see the red-haired idol while she was at the Amagi Inn. Nanako asked her cousin, "Were you in the commercial, Big bro?"

Souji nodded and Nanako looked a little jealous at his opportunity.

Their discussions included Rise as they left the Amagi Inn. Souji wondered if Yukiko and the others would be annoyed that he left early, but he did not really care at that moment. He only came because Nanako could come along with him. If Nanako did not want to stay any longer; Souji did not want to stay any longer. It was as simple as that.

_And back… to my normalcy._

Normalcy in the Dojima household, especially in the summer, meant boredom to Souji Seta. He spent the next couple of days wandering Inaba, earning pocket money by translating, and spending time with his Little sis. In other words, Souji was back to his normal routine. In other words, it was… boring.

Souji had even tried conversing with Dojima a few times during the past couple of days, no matter how futile those attempts were. Those two days of Souji trying to speak to his uncle were excruciating. His uncle was far too busy to speak with him; it was like talking to a rock.

_The god damn newspaper is more important to him than his daughter or his nephew. No wonder Nanako is so annoyed with him and will probably ask for emancipation in a few years. She can take better care of herself than he can._

He just could not shake the thought in his mind that life might be more interesting if he was doing something else… with someone. The most interesting part of the year so far was… when he and Rise were pretending to go out, despite of all of the drama involved with the situation.

_I don't really miss all of the time around her, do I?_

Souji fell asleep while reading the second night back home from the inn. Even with sleep overtaking him while reading his new novella, it was fitful and he woke exhausted. Souji did not bother heading downstairs straight away when he dressed that morning. He just opened his book again and tried to comprehend the words that were placed on the pages before him. Unfortunately, he was far too tired to make sense of what the moronic teacher was trying to do now in his book.

_Is he trying to get laid or something?_

Souji was nodding off again when a loud noise permeated throughout the home. Souji may have been half-asleep in mid-morning, but… it was not hard to recognize Nanako's voice. It was what Nanako said that brought shivers up his spine.

"Rise-chan!" Souji heard Nanako say from downstairs. To his horror, he heard, "Are you here to see Big bro?"

A tentative voice, yet still affirmative responded, "Maybe…"

Souji could hear Nanako giggling from downstairs. She asked Rise, "Do you want some breakfast?"

"You can make breakfast, Nanako-chan?" Rise responded cheerfully.

Souji, meanwhile, had closed his book and placed it on the table. Rise had come to his house, and he was not really sure why. He finally put on a new white polo shirt and proceeded to pop the collar afterwards. It did feel nice to put on a fresh shirt. Souji did not head down, however. He just sat back down on the couch and shut out the conversations that were going on below.

_What does Rise want now? What does she want enough to come all the way to my house?_

Souji stood up and was headed towards his door, his intent was to try and clear his head by splashing his face with cool water. About two steps from the doorknob, the door opened, and in burst the reason for Souji's stress and cracks in his demeanor. It was the only thing that disrupted his boring life, though, as the red-headed idol appeared in front of him. Rise had her hands behind her, one hand had a half-eaten piece of toast in it… the other; Souji did not know what she was holding in that hand. The headache still there from his lack of sleep, Souji squinted to get a good look at Rise.

Souji saw a girl that was dressed to seduce someone… at least she looked more sensually dressed than she usually did. She was wearing a very short white skirt. It was something that made Souji think.

_Yosuke would be drooling about those long legs right about now. He'd be doing that if he ever saw her in a swimsuit. He'd be so jealous if he was awake last night, and if he is here right now._

The very light blue tank top that Rise was wearing showed a lot of her midriff. It was really short, and it was considerably tight.

_Damn… did she buy these clothes when she was eight? No, I bet the agency bought them for her._

Souji stared at her dark red hair. Just like the last time he saw her, it was not in ponytails, but it was down in soft curls. In Souji's opinion, it looked much, much better.

_It probably takes a hell of a long time to set though._

Souji was startled when Rise pulled the piece of toast from behind her back. Before she took a bite, she said, "Your cousin makes good breakfast."

_She must have had some of Nanako's eggs beforehand and the toast is just more mobile._

"She'll be glad to hear that," Souji said as Rise began eating the piece of toast.

Rise smiled at Souji's comment as she finished her breakfast. Souji had to ask, "What are you doing in my room? As a matter of fact… what are you doing in the Residential District?"

"To see you," Rise explained, "I told you that you have to do something for me for my birthday."

Souji shook his head. He should have just kept his mouth shut about that locket.

Rise's smile was telling that it was going to be trouble as Souji asked, "What am I supposed to do?"

Rise's smiled widened, "You… have to take me on a real date."

Souji's eyes widened this time around.

_She has to be kidding me. What the hell is she thinking!_

Rise must have expected the shock from Souji because Rise chuckled as she said, "I have something for you."

Souji got to see what the other object behind Rise's back was as she handed a magazine-like object to the silver-haired young man standing just inside his room.

"What the hell is this!" Souji asked, placing it at eye level.

On the cover was a picture of Rise modeling in very tight jeans, a white sleeveless shirt that did not leave much to the imagination due to its tightness, a leather vest, and a cowboy hat. She had a playful smile to go with her long red hair and dark brown eyes.

"A never-released edition," Rise said, "Something a lot of people would pay a lot of money for."

Souji suddenly realized what he had. He said, still a little out of it, "This is a pin-up book… your pin-up book." Souji was a little scared to look at anymore to see what she was showing to his agency.

Rise nodded, "You like it?" She warned, "Don't tell anyone I gave it to you. My agency would be so pissed if they knew I just did that."

Souji was not really sure what to say, "Uhh… thanks." He continued, "So… if I'm taking you on a date… where do you want to go?"

Rise looked like she was thinking for a moment. Souji looked worried as to what Rise might have him take her. Rise sat down on Souji's couch for a moment before saying to the silver-haired young man, "How about… we finish that date that we never finished?"

"The one to Okina City?" Souji questioned.

Rise nodded, "Yep…"

"Are we going on another shopping spree?" Souji asked.

Rise kept her eyes fixed on Souji and said with that fixed smile, "I don't know… maybe I should let you take me somewhere in Okina."

Souji sighed, "Well… we need to leave this room to go, don't we?"

_This was going to be so tedious… but… I owe her as much._

Rise stood up, and grabbed hold of his arm as they headed down the stairs. He barely had time to grab his wallet, which was still full of the money from when he had expected to buy Rise's gift the last time. Nanako was waiting for them in the living room when the two of them reached the bottom of the stairs. Nanako's smile at Souji was telling him something akin to, "I told you so…"

_I wonder if people are going to recognize Rise again and it's going to cause another god damn firestorm. _

Souji made sure Rise was not holding his arm as they left the Dojima Residence and left the Residential District. They would need to take the bus, so the pair of them headed to the South Shopping District next to the Moei Gas Station. In the three minutes that Rise and Souji had to wait for the bus, Rise placed her head on Souji's shoulder.

_This is just like when Rise first came here._

Souji would not let Rise grab his hand when the bus arrived. He knew she wanted to, but he did not want a repeat of last time Souji pretended to be with Rise. Unfortunately, that did not stop her from laying her head on Souji's shoulder while they sat on the back of the bus. They could not sit anywhere else; it was far too crowded, and they risked being noticed if they sat anywhere else.

Souji sighed. It was silly to relive all of these same memories of paparazzi and photographers all over again.

Rise had closed her eyes as they passed street after street. She asked, "Souji-kun? Do you like me with my hair down?"

Souji put his hand on his chin. He closed his eyes for a second to picture Rise with her hair in pigtails, and her hair down and in curls. It only took a second for Souji to decide. He responded, "I like your hair down. It's cute."

Souji could tell Rise was smiling, but he wanted to sigh as she snuggled a little deeper into his shoulder. He did not really mind Rise being on his shoulder; he just… hated controversy. If he did not fear hurting Rise's reputation, he would admit that it was kind of nice to have Rise around.

Souji shook Rise when they arrived at the station to Okina City. She was a little groggy when he led her down the escalator to the shopping area of the mini-city. People came to Okina for the shopping first, and not much else. Shopping… Souji's natural enemy.

_Looks like I have to figure out what to do while I'm here now… Please no one recognize Rise while I'm here._

Rise brushed back her hair as she blinked her eyes. They were standing in the middle of the plaza, near a few stores that the two of them visited a couple of months ago. Souji was not sure where to take her, so she let Rise lead the way. It was not a very stereotypical masculine thing to do in many cases, but… what else could Souji do?

Souji started to regret his decision to let Rise choose where to travel within Okina. It was mainly watching her meander around a store, pick out a piece of clothes, and then try it on. The only good point… he got to see her try it on and model it for her.

_At least she has not bought anything yet._

Rise exited the dressing room wearing a long yellow sundress. She looked really pretty in it. Rise smiled so much more than she did when she first came here. It just complimented her dress perfectly.

The red-haired idol spun around, letting the yellow dress flow around her ankles, and asked Souji, "What do you think?"

"You look really pretty," Souji responded truthfully.

Rise could not help but to wrap her arms around Souji's neck. He had to dislodge her before the salesman came around. It was far too close a call.

As the salesman came up to Rise, obviously happy to have her in his store, and believing that Souji was just some guy to carry her bags… he asked in awe of her presence, "What do you think, Rise-san?"

"I love it," Rise smiled, "I'll take it…"

"I'm glad. I'll be waiting at the front desk," the salesman said.

As Rise turned around to go back to the dressing room to change out of the dress, the salesman stared at the retreating idol. The guy had been staring at her ever since she had entered, with her short skirt and tight shirt. Souji knew that the guy did not want to leave either, and that's why Souji glared at him. When Rise came out of the dressing room with the yellow dress, she pulled out her plastic card, which really surprised Souji. He thought he would be paying for this.

_What's going on?_

When Rise did not hand the bag to Souji after she bought it, the salesman looked confused. Yet, Rise only smiled at the guy working at the store. She said, "I can't go shopping with a friend?"

Souji was not sure if he should ask about it when they came out of the store, but he said, "That dress was expensive. Are you sure you didn't want me to pay for it?"

Rise shook her head, "No, no… this wasn't the thing you wanted to buy me for my birthday, right?"

Souji's heart dropped. For one moment, he had completely forgotten about that. He sighed as he thought about that gold locket. He still did not have enough money to buy it. Rise saw his disillusionment.

Rise told Souji, "Why don't you take me to the place where the thing you wanted to get is?"

Souji nodded and led Rise towards Croco Fur. Halfway there, Souji stopped to Rise's confusion, at an ice cream stand.

"Do you want some?" Souji asked, still not very excited about the prospect of showing her something he could not afford.

Rise would not say it, but she loved ice cream. She nodded happily, "I'd love to have some ice cream."

"What kind?" Souji asked.

"I love chocolate ice cream," Rise responded.

Souji ended up buying two cones of chocolate ice cream because he was partial to chocolate as well. They had to eat quickly before it melted. He was not much in the mood to eat ice cream with her, but… maybe it would make her feel better considering he could not buy her what she wanted.

_If only Nanako didn't pick it out… It is a really pretty locket, but… still… damn._

He nearly cursed in surprise when Rise placed remnants of chocolate ice cream on Souji's nose. Her cheery smile belied any worries on the idol's mind. Souji tried to smile as he wiped off the chocolate, and then proceeded to place chocolate on Rise's nose as well. They finished their ice cream before they entered Croco Fur. Souji was sure the workers would not like the pair of them getting ice cream on the purses, fur coats, and display cases. Souji gave an uneasy smile to Rise's cheery grin as they threw away their napkins… Souji opened the door.

"Ooh…," Rise was surprised by the variety of goods as soon as they entered the store. Souji let her go browse the place at her own free will because he was in no hurry to face her either. The only surprise to him was that it was a male salesperson at the front today who kept his eyes trained on Rise. Souji just stuck to the back wall, relaxed, and closed his eyes to try and prevent the impending headache.

Eventually, Rise stopped perusing the purses and fancy scarves, and went back to drag Souji to the display cases full of pretty and expensive jewelry. As both of them stood over the cases, the idol asked the silver-haired boy, "Which one is it?"

_Please have been sold…_

To Souji's dismay, the golden locket was still sitting there in all of its shining glory. What was worse was that the price had gone up by a thousand yen. Souji could do nothing but point at the heart-shaped locket in front of him.

_At least she looks happy at seeing it._

Indeed, when Rise saw the locket, she was excited. It looked like Nanako had made a good choice… except that Nanako chose something Souji could not buy for Rise.

"That's so pretty, Souji-kun," Rise said, before asking, "How did you find this?"

"Nanako picked it out," Souji explained. He was not going to lie.

Rise chuckled, "Nanako has good taste."

"No clue what I would have chosen if it was me," Souji shook his head.

"I'm sure it would still have been great," Rise reassured him.

"I don't have enough money for this locket, though," Souji hung his head.

Rise looked at Souji, to the salesperson who was giving the pair an odd look, and back to Souji. Rise's smile turned from cheery to mischievous, "Give me your wallet and I'll get it at the right price."

The look on Souji's face turned from depressed to one who was horrified. He had no idea what Rise might do to lower the price of that locket. Even if he did this, it was a blow to his pride, plus he did not want Rise to objectify herself.

Rise whispered into Souji's ear, "Trust me, Souji-kun."

Souji sighed. He had to listen, he had to trust Rise. She knew what she was doing, hopefully and Souji had to trust that. That's why Souji silently handed over his wallet to Rise and walked out of the store in complete silence.

_God help her…_

Souji was getting a few weird looks from couples as they passed a lone young man standing outside a shop that catered most of their goods to females. Souji felt anxious waiting for her. The unknown was bothering him… just wondering what was going on was unnerving. It was nearly five minutes until Rise came out, holding a small bag with the Croco Fur label on it.

_She's back… but it took so long…_

Souji gazed up at her face, trying to see if her hair was disheveled at all. Rise gazed right back at him and held the bag in both of her hands in front of her waist.

"Sorry…," Rise said with a small smile, "The guy did not know how to count."

Souji sighed. Rise could see he looked uneasy about the situation. She said, "Don't worry about it. All I did was give him my cell number."

Even with Rise's proclamation, Souji did not feel that much better. He just felt… bad that he could not provide for his friend. There was nothing he could say to her and nothing she could possibly say to her to make him feel better about it.

Rise seemed to know that Souji was still depressed. "Souji-kun…," she said softly. She reached into the bag and first gave Souji back his wallet, which felt very light to the silver-haired young man. Souji tried to smile to Rise at the fact there was a little money left in his wallet, but he could not. Rise followed by taking out a small velvet-like box from her Croco Fur bag and then slipping the bag on her wrist. As she opened the box… laid the locket that tormented Souji since he first laid eyes on it. The idol unhooked the heart-shaped locket and turned it around as she placed it in Souji's hands. She seemed to be waiting for Souji to place the piece of jewelry around his neck, but Souji took a second to look at it. It was really beautiful, but only one thing would make it more so. Souji sighed as he reached around Rise's neck and attached the clasp of the locket. Rise gave a small smile to him as she straightened out the locket with her hand.

As Rise felt the locket around her neck, Souji took a step back. This gesture was to make him feel better. He looked up when Rise took his hands in her own hands.

_Her hands are so smooth._

She removed her right hand and pushed away Souji's left hand as she interlocked her fingers with Souji's in the other. Rise began to walk along with Souji, and he decided to follow. Souji did not really know where they where they were headed in Okina, but he did not really care anymore.

Souji was not really looking forward or focusing on any one single thing, but he could feel people starting to stare at the pair of them. It was obvious why people were looking at the two. For the first time since Rise left to return to modeling, they were holding hands. This was supposed to be a real date, though, but… he was not sure if it really was one.

"Souji-kun!" Souji turned as Rise pointed towards a somewhat-tall and wide blue booth covered by blue curtains. On the side, it said 'Pictures!' and a little dispenser where money was put in and you pictures were taken out afterwards was underneath. Rise started to drag him towards the place.

Souji sighed. At that moment, a high school boy and girl around Souji's age came out from behind the curtains. Both were beet red as they exited and tried to rearrange their hair. They barely remembered to pick up their photos, if they took any.

_I guess they were engaging in activities other than taking pictures in that booth._

The girl was giggling, but when she looked up and saw Rise in her view… she stopped. She nudged the boy, who looked at Rise; his jaw dropped. The boy looked like he wanted to take a round with Rise in the blue booth. Luckily, the girl saw the boy's face and dragged him of Rise's sight.

"Well…," Rise turned her head to look at Souji after the pair left their sight, "Should we go?"

"I don't know…," Souji said reluctantly.

Rise grabbed hold of Souji's left arm and said, "The fact that you wanted to buy this for me… touches me more than anything else someone could do for me."

_So… Nanako finding the locket combined with me wanting to buy it? I don't know… _

Souji stopped resisting and allowed Rise to pull him all the way to the photo booth. About a meter and a half away, Rise stopped and released Souji from her death grip. She opened her small white purse and pulled out a small wallet. From there, she took out a hundred yen note and placed it in the machine. Rise said to Souji, "Let's go, Souji-kun!"

Souji still felt a little uneasy as Rise pushed back the blue curtains and gestured for Souji to stand on the right side of the booth. Souji could still sense the pungent perfume of the girl who had been there before. It was a lot stronger and less fragrant than what Rise was wearing. Rise entered and stood to the left of Souji, and stood right by him as she placed her shopping bags underneath the blue bench. "Are you ready, Souji-kun?"

"Umm...," Souji had no idea what pose he was supposed to take, "Where…?"

Before Souji knew it, Rise was on Souji's shoulder and he only had one second to wrap his arm around her waist and smile before the camera inside the booth went off.

"Geez…," Souji muttered after the picture flashed.

"Three more…," Rise smiled at Souji.

Rise took her head off of Souji's shoulder, but instead focused her shoulder against Souji's own. Souji's and Rise's smile was smaller this time as the camera flashed in front of them.

As they broke contact, Rise said to the silver-haired young man, "Funny pose this time, Souji-kun!"

Souji screwed up his eyes and stuck up his middle and forefinger over Rise's head. Rise did similar motions at the same time.

"Sit down, Souji-kun…," Rise told him.

"Okay…," Souji said and sat on the bench behind him. Suddenly, Rise sat in-between his legs and wrapped his arms around her stomach. As she lay back, she put her head by Souji's right ear… almost touching it.

_What's she getting at? But… her skin is really soft._

Souji and Rise released themselves from each other after the final picture flashed. Rise looked excited to see the pictures because she wanted them for the locket. Rise almost dashed out of the booth to check the pictures. When they came out, she grabbed them and looked at them, gazing up and down.

Rise squealed in delight, "They're great!" She dragged Souji to look at them.

Souji gazed upon the third one. The 'funny pose' was good. The 'last pose' was…

_Why… Why did I let her put us in that position?_ _I know why…_

"I need to shrink the pictures," Rise smiled, "My agency can help me out with that."

Rise put the pictures in the Croco Fur bag and put that bag in the larger bag. Rise felt Souji grasp her left hand as they left the photo booth. Souji was done with Okina. He had enough of Okina for as long as possible. The only way he would go back… is if Rise begged him to…

_Rise…_

Souji and Rise got on the bus stop, but Souji was not sure if Rise realized that they were holding hands. If she did, she was probably happy that they were. If they were not holding hands at the moment, she would probably try and force Souji to hold hands. They headed to the back of the bus again, but people on the bus were staring at them this time. There was one big thing that Rise did not realize… they were not headed back to the Shopping District.

_The silence is nice…_

"Souji-kun… are we at the…?" Rise started to say before Souji finished.

Souji nodded, "Yes… we're at the edge of town."

They had stepped off the bus; Rise had fallen asleep on Souji's shoulder… again. Only when Souji shook Rise awake and they walked off the bus did she notice where they were.

Souji felt Rise grasp his hand as he headed towards an oak tree. He sat down and put his back against the tree. Souji sighed as he relaxed against the tree; he was exhausted. Like before, he felt Rise sit in-between him and put his arms around her waist.

_I don't know why… it feels nice, but it just does._

Souji wanted to close his eyes… and he could not keep them from shutting. At least he stopped himself from falling asleep for the moment. Rise asked, "Do you know what my biggest mistake was when I left to be an idol again?"

"What is it, Rise-chan?" Souji responded. Souji could tell her eyes were closed.

Rise answered, "It was… not telling those paparazzi how I really felt."

Souji had to ask, "Can you… Can you now?"

Rise sighed, "Souji-kun… I don't know. I… I really…. Damn it! How come I can't say it when it really matters!"

_Rise is cursing?_

"Souji-kun…," Rise continued, "I love you."

_That was not so bad… now was it?_

Souji could not fight the urge to sleep anymore. He felt himself slip into unconsciousness.

An hour later, Souji woke up with his hands still around Rise's waist.

_So soft…_

He shook Rise awake before they walked back towards the bus station. The ride back… was the slowest possible, at least to the pair sitting in the back of the bus. To the girl with her head on the young man's shoulder, the ride should never end. When they finally reached the stop, it was where the two were full of lament as they walked back towards Marukyu.

The two reached Marukyu and for the first time all day, Rise frowned. She looked sincerely sad. Souji knew why…

_After this… who knows when she can come back?_

Souji was wrong, but Nanako was right. He was annoyed that he could not afford the money to buy that locket for Rise, but he enjoyed the time with her… even if it was in Okina. There was nothing he could do, but… suffer by denying the truth.

Souji stood face-to-face with Rise, her long red hair flowing down her body. Souji wrapped her arms around Rise's waist, while Rise's went around his shoulders. They edged closer and closer until their lips touched… softly, ever so softly. What was for a minute felt like an eternity.

When their lips broke, Rise backed her face away for a moment to say to him, "I don't care what anyone will say about me this time."

Their lips touched again, a little harder, but still… a soft kiss.

This time, after they broke… they detached from each other completely. It was the end… the last time they would see each other. Souji closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Maybe… it would calm himself down.

Rise said softly, "I don't know when I'll be back, but… I will see you on Christmas Eve."

Souji kept his eyes shut as she walked away and entered Marukyu Tofu.

_Christmas, huh?_

* * *

Okay… I am completely sick of this story. This is an abrupt end to the story that I kind of got burned out of. I know it was rushed and if you felt Souji was bipolar… you never went to high school.


End file.
